Miss Edith Shelby
by Pinklover98
Summary: Edith is the youngest Shelby sibling, protected fiercely by family, particularly her four older brothers. So how will they react when she meets and falls for Bonnie Gold?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED SEASON 4!

Set in the time before Christmas of Season 4; Aberama and Bonnie meet the Shelby's earlier than in the show, this story starts in the year before John gets shot and carries on into the season.

* * *

Walking down Watery Lane, arm in arm with her best friend Millie, Edith Shelby stops still in her tracks, staring at the young boy stood with a group of older men outside the door to the house she shares with her brother Finn.

"Who on earth is that?" Millie exclaims, clutching Edith's arm tighter.

"Not a clue." She mutters back under her breath. "Go home Mil, I'd better go find out."

"But Edie.."

"No Mil, go, 'k? I'll come by later."

"Fine." Millie replies with a scowl and a pointed look at her friend. "But I want a run down on the cutie with the dark hair, got it?"

"Got it." She calls over her shoulder with a chuckle as she heads towards to group of men. "Can I help you gentlemen?" She asks politely as she reaches the group.

"Nothing to bother yourself with young lady." Comes the reply. Edith stops and quirks an eyebrow, looking the man up and down.

"We're here to see Mr Thomas Shelby." Another man states, stepping forward and pushing the other man back, clearly the leader of the group.

"He's not here." Edith states, crossing her arms over her chest. "Who's asking?"

"Aberama Gold." Mr Gold sticks out his hand for Edith to shake, who confidently steps forward and takes his hand in hers. "You've got gypsy blood in ya girl, I can feel it. And you are?"

"Edith!" Comes a gruff, slightly angry shout from behind her. "Edith." She sighs and turns to face her uncle who was storming quickly down the street. "Edie come here."

"I'm fine Uncle Charlie." She huffs, "This is Mr Aberama Gold. He's here to see Tommy."

"What have I told you girl?" He sighs, gently pulling Edith back towards Curly by her arm.

"It's fine uncle. Nothing happened."

"Mr Shelby is not around." Charlie continues, turning away from his niece and to the group of men.

"How did you know I was here Curly?" Edith whispers as her uncle continues his conversation with Aberama.

"Your friend Millie." Curly replies with a nod. "Came runnin', told Charlie you were talking to some men, yeah, strange lookin' men she said."

"Gonna kill that girl." She mutters under her breath, rolling her eyes as she spots her sister heading towards the group.

"What's going on here?" Ada calls as she approaches the men. "Uncle Charlie?"

"This is Aberama Gold, Ada." Edith calls in reply, making her presence known.

"Ah." Ada says, letting her shoulders relax and holding her hand out. "Mr Gold. Pleasure to meet you. I'm Ada Thorne. Tommy said to expect you. Please, come inside."

"Ada." Charlie warns, taking a step forwards.

"It's alright Uncle Charlie." She reassures him. "All is well. You and Curly can go now, Edith will stay with me."

"But Ada..."

"Uncle Charlie." Ada snaps with a scowl, unlocking the front door. "Edith, come on."

"Bye Curly." Edith whispers, pressing a kiss to his cheek

"See ya later Miss Edith." He replies as he heads off with Charlie, who was still shaking his head and muttering under his breath.

Ada opens the front door, ushering the men in as she asks, "Now, Mr Gold. Can I get you and your men a cup of tea?"

* * *

"It's Edith, right?" The 'cutie with the dark hair' as Millie had called him appears beside Edith, who was sat drumming her fingers on the sideboard. She nods up at him, furrowing her brows as he pulls a chair up beside her.

"Bonnie." He states, holding out his hand for her to shake. "Bonnie Gold."

"Gold." she repeats "Mr Gold's..."

"Son." He cuts her off with a smirk, pressing a kiss to the back of her hand.

"Quite confident in yourself ain't ya Mr Gold."

"Somewhat I suppose." He replies leaning back in his chair. "And you're Mr Shelby's..."

"Sister." She replies in the same teasing tone, turning to face him in her chair. "So, what brings you here, Bonnie?"

"Business." He simply replies, turning to face her way. "Do you work with your brothers?"

"Sometimes." Edith states, nodding her head to one side. "Why? You hoping to see some more of me around?"

"Well..." Bonnie trails off, cheeks blushing leading Edith to hide her smile by turning her head.

"Do I make you nervous Bonnie?" Before he has chance to answer her question, Edith's brothers come striding into the room. She stands up quickly, beginning to head their way as Ada introduces Aberama and his men to Tommy.

"No Miss Shelby." Bonnie whispers in Edith's ear as he passes her, gently pressing a hand into her lower back as he does. "Not at all." Edith blushes this time, watching as Bonnie pushes his way to the front of the group beside his father before catching Arthur's eye, who motions with his head for her to join him with their brothers.

* * *

"So, Edie, your friend coming tonight?" Isiah asks, leaning across the table towards Edith. "Millie, right?" Finn fights back a snort, glancing between his sister, who was rolling her eyes, and his friend.

"No." Edith states with a smirk after a minute of matching Isiah's stance, leaning across the table, eyes locked as he deflates back against his chair. This time Finn and Michael choke out laughs against their glasses.

"Aww, Isiah's got a crush!" Finn teases earning a kick under the table from his friend.

"Shut up." He growls

"Mind if I join you?" All eyes turn to the young man stood in front of their booth.

"Of course." Edith replies quickly, the three other boys meeting each other's eyes with questioning looks as the dark haired boy slides into the booth beside Edith.

"Sorry, you are?" Finn asks, peering around his sister, immediately protective over her.

"Bonnie Gold." Edith and Bonnie reply at the same time, earning another glance between the boys.

"Bonnie." He repeats, shooting Edith a smile who shrinks back against the chair blushing as he shakes the hands of the boys.

"Finn Shelby." Finn states as he shakes Bonnie's hand. "Edith's brother. Older brother." Edith rolls her eyes at this, nudging Finn's shoulder with hers, sending him a look that tells him he didn't need to add the last part, the two of them only being 18 months apart in age.

"Bonnie and his dad are working with Tommy," Edith explains "We met earlier. They came by to meet Tom, John and Arthur. While you three were out doing whatever it is you boys do to fill your time."

"Like what?" Isiah cuts in, watching the other boy over the rim of his glass.

"Whatever the Peaky Blinders need." He responds

Edith turns to him quickly, eager to change the subject from her brother's business, "Excuse me please Bonnie." She says, indicating that she wanted to slide out of the booth past him. He stands, allowing her to pass, all four boys watching as she heads towards the bar. Without a glance back at Finn, Michael and Isiah, Bonnie follows Edith, joining her at the bar, resting his elbows on the wooden surface. Edith smiles, hiding it behind her hair as she watches him out of the corner of her eye. "Yes?"

"Can I buy you a drink Miss Shelby?" He asks lowly, eyes trained on her face which breaks into a smile.

"I don't pay for my drinks Mr Gold," she responds, resting her head in her palm, pausing a second before replying, "But a gin would be lovely."

"A gin it is." Bonnie replies with a smile, motioning for the attention of the barmaid, unaware of the glares from Finn, still sat with Michael and Isiah, and the stares coming from the three older Shelby boys who had just entered the bar.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

AN: Thank you for the reviews! Not much Bonnie and Edith in this chapter (there will be more in the next!) this one gives a bit more background to Edith and focuses more on her relationships with her brothers. Enjoy!

* * *

"What were you doing with that Gold boy last night, eh?" Arthur questions Edith as she walks into his office.

"Morning Arthur! Lovely weather today, nice to see you too!" Edith sings dropping herself into a chair opposite her brother. "We were just talking." She huffs at his glare. "Having a drink, just like I do with Finn, Isiah and Michael all the time."

"Finn's ya brother, Michael's ya cousin." Arthur states, pointing his cigarette at her. "It's different. Very different Edith."

"And Isiah?" She asks with a smirk and a quirk of her eyebrows. Arthur grumbles under his breath as Edith smiles and leans back in her chair. "That's what I thought. Can I have one?" Edith points at the glass of whiskey Arthur was pouring for himself.

"No!" He exclaims "it's barely 11 o'clock in the morning!"

"You've got one!" She explodes, sitting upright in her chair

"I'm an adult!"

"That's no excuse!"

"Don't shout at me Missy!"

"That's not fair! You're shouting too!"

"Oi!" Comes a yell from the room next door followed by a loud banging on the joining wall. "Will you two shut the fuck up?" Tommy shouts making the two siblings freeze.

"Sorry Tom!" Edith calls back sheepishly, falling back into her chair. "Sorry Arthur. I was just joking. I shouldn't have shouted at you."

"Damn right." Arthur grunts, taking a swig from his glass of whiskey. Edith rolls her eyes, letting her head fall onto the back of her chair.

"You're impossible." She sighs

"You too." He huffs, sitting in silence for a few seconds before glancing up and meeting Edith's eye. They hold each other's gaze for a few seconds more before Edith could no longer hold her giggles in, covering her mouth with her fingers to attempt to hold them in. Arthur lets out a snort before both of them burst into laughter.

"Why are we laughing?" Edith fights out between giggles, Arthur shakes his head in response. "I've missed this Arthur, we haven't spent a lot of time together recently."

"I know. I'm sorry." Arthur says, rubbing at his eyes. "Let's try and not scream at each other next time, eh?" Edith nods and pulls her chair closer to the desk.

"So what did you need me for?" She asks, resting her head in her hands on the desk. "I'm guessing it wasn't really about last night?"

"I needed you to check over these numbers for me." He says, pushing a book over to her. "Legal business of course."

"Of course." She huffs, rolling her eyes again as she reaches out and pulls the book into her lap. "But Michael's the company accountant. Why not ask him?"

"I'm asking you." Edith nods slowly, running her finger down the page, muttering under her breath. Time with her brothers was limited since the company had grown, she was old enough now to understand why they did what they did, why they were so cautious to protect her, watch over her; which was why she decided not to push Arthur's reasoning any further, realising that his thoughts behind calling her in may have been purely to spend a little more time with his baby sister.

"You wanna go out for lunch?" She asks suddenly. Arthur's head snaps up from the paperwork he was working on.

"Huh?"

"Lunch." She repeats. "Ya know, food...could be hot...could be cold...a drink..."

"I know what lunch is." Arthur responds with a pointed look, immediately silencing his sister. He motions to the book in her lap, "You done already?"

"No." She replies, shrugging. "Won't take me too long though. We can go out afterwards?"

"Uhh," Arthur stammers, brows furrowed. "Yeah. Ok. Sure."

"Ok." Edith says with a smile. "Great!"

* * *

"Miss Edith Shelby." Edith freezes, her hand pausing on the horse's back, tightly holding the brush. 'Be calm Edith.' She thinks to herself, taking a deep breath before turning to greet the person behind her.

"Mr Bonnie Gold." She calls back, flashing him a smile. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Heard your Uncle kept horses, figured I'd stop by to meet them." He replies, slowly walking towards her, hands shoved deep in his pockets.

"You like horses?" She asks, him nodding in reply, motioning to her saying, "And it appears you do too. May I help?" He points to the bucket of brushes at her feet, bending to pick one as she nods in response. "What's his name?"

"Her." She corrects quickly, Bonnie shooting her an apologetic look. "Juniper."

"Beautiful name."

"Beautiful horse." He nods in agreement, the two teens falling into a comfortable silence.

"How often do you come down here?" He asks after a while.

"Nearly every day." Edith replies, resuming her slow strokes with brush. "Finished school last year so I need something to fill my time."

"Along with working for your brothers?"

"Hmm. I don't do much with them." She admits, moving to the other side of the horse, partly so that she could see his face more clearly as they talk. "I'm, uh, only allowed to help with the legal stuff.."

"I see." Bonnie replies, pausing his movements to watch her for a minute. "So...if I was to come by same time tomorrow...you'd be here?" Edith immediately blushes deeply, turning her back to the young man, pretending to sort through the bucket.

"I suppose so." She says softly as she straightens again.

"Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Bonnie states with a smile, throwing his brush back into the bucket and giving the horse a pat on the back.

"I guess so." She replies, returning his smile and following him to the door of the pen.

"It's a date." He says with a wink, walking backwards through the stable, maintaining eye contact until he reaches the door, where he turns and heads back the way he came. Edith lets out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding, falling back against the pen door.

"My brothers are going to kill me." She groans, pressing her head into the horse's neck.

"Edith!" Comes a call from the entrance. Edith snaps her head up, hand coming to rest on her chest as she focuses in on who had shouted her name.

"Jesus Christ Finn!" She shouts, pushing away from the door. "You scared the shit out of me!"

"Eh don't be a wuss!" He calls back, waiting by the entrance door for her to get close enough before he starts to walk away. "Come on. Tommy's called a family meeting. By the way, was that that Gold boy I just saw?"

* * *

"I'm just saying, I think they're no good!"

"And I'm just saying, I think you need to get to know someone before you make that kind of judgement!" Edith quips back at her older brother, barely managing to keep her temper in check and remain seated in her chair. Michael's hand on her arm was the only thing stopping her from taking a swing at John who had scoffed at her comment, turning away from her.

"Edith." Michael whispers her name as a warning under his breath, moving his hand from her arm to her hand. "Breathe."

"He's being an ass Michael." She mutters back.

"And you're being a tad sensitive." This reply earns him a scowl from his cousin who tries to remove her hand from his grasp. "Let him talk and then you can state your case. You know how this works."

"But that's not fair."

"Life's not fair Edie." Ada offers from the other side of her. "Now shush. Or you'll get kicked out. Again." Edith huffs, finally freeing her hand from Michael's, leaning back in her chair with her arms tightly crossed over her chest.

"Can I at least have a cigarette?" She questions quietly earning a sharp "No!" from either side of her.

"Anything you'd like to add Edith?" Tommy finally asks his younger sister, who slowly shakes her head.

"I've been told to keep quiet."

"Jesus fucking Christ." Ada mutters from beside her as Michael glares at her from the other side.

"Edith." He grounds out, staring at her until she meets his eye. She shrugs again and pushes up from her chair.

"You clearly all think I'm still a child. Or incapable of sensibility. Or stupid."

"Edith." Arthur joins in the battle, rising up from his chair to meet his sisters glare. "Sit down."

"Yeah Edith, sit down." John repeats earning eye rolls from most of his family

"Don't get involved John." Ada chastises, cutting her eyes to her brother. "It's not worth it."

"Yeah John. Don't get involved." Edith mocks, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow at her brother, taunting him to respond. John and Edith had a love-hate relationship with each other, had since they were young. Neither would admit that it leaned more towards the love side, both too stubborn to admit that really, they needed the other to balance themselves out. As Edith had gotten older and more assertive in her desire to be part of the company too, eventually becoming more involved in the legal side of the family business, John had struggled to understand that his sister was no longer the baby they still often viewed her as, and that sometimes, it was best not to push her buttons and to leave her be. As she had grown up, Edith had developed her oldest brother's temper, something which she took great lengths to try to control. It often fell to Michael or Finn to bring her down from her temper tantrums and deal with the fall out afterwards. She may have seemed like a strong, stubborn young girl on the outside, but Edith Shelby had a softer, more gentle and vulnerable side that often only came out for her cousin or closest brother in age, much to the pain of her Aunt Pol and Thomas, who diligently tried to help the young girl.

* * *

"I'm fine Tom. Sorry for snapping at John. It won't happen again." Tommy scoffs at his sister's statement, watching her from the corner of his eye as she shuffled along beside him on the walk home. He had barely managed to diffuse the situation between his siblings during the meeting, finishing things up just in time to walk Edith home before it got dark.

"Now we both know that's not true Edith." He responds around his cigarette. "Try again." She huffs before responding, grumbling under her breath as she does.

"I'm sorry for..."

"Be genuine." Tommy cuts in receiving an eye roll this time

"Tommy, I'm very sorry for being an.."

"Edith. Try again. Last chance."

"Jesus Tommy! I'm sorry, ok? I'm trying here but he's just so damn annoying sometimes!"

"There we go." Tommy mutters quietly, giving a small smile, pleased he had managed to get his sister to fold and release her anger somewhat.

"He just doesn't listen! And when he does he's got that damn smirk on his face! And then he just rolls his eyes and ignores me!"

"You do exactly the same thing Edith." Tommy chastises with a click of his fingers.

"Yeah but that's different." She huffs "He's rude." Tommy nods, aware of the irony but deciding not to push it, letting Edith carry on with her rant as they draw closer to Watery Lane. "I'm trying Tommy." She implores, stopping in her tracks. "But it goes both ways. And I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle recently. He's either off doing business or fucking Esme. He's not the same John."

"He is." Tommy responds, beginning to lead Edith down the street again. "You're just older too and noticing different things. He's still our John boy, he's just trying to figure out how to make everything work between the house in the country, Esme, the kids, the company. Us. And he'll get there. We all will. Just give it time, ok? And for god sake Edith, stop losing your temper at us, eh?"

"Sorry Tommy. I really am trying." She says quietly as they reach the door to her and Finn's house. "You coming in?"

"Nah. I gotta get going. I'll see you tomorrow though." He presses a kiss to her forehead, giving time for Edith's arms to snake around his torso in a tight hug. Surprised at the unexpected show of affection from his sister, Tommy takes a second to respond before wrapping his own arms around her. "You'll be ok Edie." He whispers into her hair, pressing another kiss there as she pulls away and heads into the house.


	3. Chapter3

Chapter 3

"Hello," Edith calls cautiously, hovering in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Hi!" Comes the enthusiastic reply from the girl sat at Edith's dining table. "I'm Alice."

"Hi Alice," Edith responds, brow furrowed. "I'm Edith."

"Oh, I know." Alice says, still smiling as she points to the teapot on the table. "Tea's fresh."

"Thanks." Edith mumbles, taking a tea cup from the sideboard and pouring herself a cup. "I'm sorry, how did you get in here?"

"I'm Finn's friend." The other girl explains "I spent the night. Finn's just in the bathroom getting ready."

"Ah." Edith replies, raising her eyebrows. "Got it."

"Oh good, you've met." Finn says as he saunters into the kitchen. "Breakfast on yet Edie?"

"I've just got down here myself!" Edith replies with a laugh, following her brother over to the stove. "This is not a bed and breakfast Finn!" She hisses, taking hold of Finn's arm. "If you want to make breakfast for your one night stand, little friend over there, do it yourself."

"Jeez Edith." Finn snaps back, shaking his arm free. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." Edith huffs and shakes her head.

"I don't have time for this," she groans, placing her cup in the sink. "I'm meeting Millie at church. Going to see Aunt Pol afterwards. It was nice to meet you Alice." She says politely, throwing the girl a smile as she leaves.

"You too!" Alice calls after her, making Edith chuckle at her enthusiasm as she makes her way back upstairs.

————————

"Morning!" Edith calls to Millie and her family as she jogs to catch up with them.

"Morning Edie," Millie responds, linking their arms together. "How's cutie with the dark hair?" Edith throws her her back and laughs

"He has a name Millie!"

"Ah yes! Mr Bonnie Gold!" she exclaims, pronouncing the name as if he were a Hollywood film star. "So. How is he?"

"He's fine Millie." Edith laughs at friend as she pulls a face at the lack of information on the boy. "There's not much to tell Mil, haven't really seen him much. I tell you what I have seen though!"

"What?"

"A lovely girl named Alice sitting in my kitchen this morning." Edith sings, making Millie laugh.

"What?" She asks again, still chuckling.

"Yup. A friend of Finn's apparently. She spent the night."

"Huh."

"Ohhh...someone's jealous!" Edith teases, knocking her shoulder into Millie's.

"Oh shush." Millie groans, Edith mock gasping at her friend

"So you don't deny it! You're in love with my brother! We could be sisters!

"Ok! Love is a very strong word!" Her friend protests, pointing her finger at Edith. "Don't get ahead of yourself. And don't go starting rumours."

"As if I would!" Edith gasps, resting her head on Millie's shoulder. "I can just see it now..." she says dramatically, "you and Finn...riding off into the sunset..."

"I don't like horses." Millie cuts in

"Well learn to." Edith jokes making Millie groan in protest again. "Ok fine, speeding out of Small Heath in one of Tommy's luxury cars?"

"Now that," Millie says, snapping her fingers at Edith. "Is more like it." Edith laughs again at her friend, hugging her close by her arm.

"I'll see what I can do." She says with a wink.

"Hi Aunt Pol." Edith says softly with a gentle smile, sliding into the pew beside her Aunt. Polly has been bringing Edith to church since she was a baby, the only Shelby child that had grown up, yet still continued joining their Aunt on a Sunday morning. Even when Polly wasn't around Edith kept up the routine, meeting up with Millie and her family at the end of Watery Lane and attending the local church service with them every week, something she knew her Aunt would approve of. The hour a week gave Edith the quiet she needed away from the busy lives of her older brothers, time to be at peace before re-entering the crazy world of the Peaky Blinders. She sits back, waiting for her Aunt to rise her from her knelt position, pressing a kiss to her cheek when she does. "You came."

"You sound surprised." Polly responds, leaning back on the bench.

"I am." Edith replies quietly, placing her hand in her Aunts, this was the first time her aunt had attended a service with Edith in a while. "Didn't expect to see you here. I was going to come by later. With Michael. Maybe Finn too?"

"Michael doesn't come around. He chases after that damn brother of yours."

"But he should. He will. With me you know he will." Edith assures her Aunt, squeezing her hand. "So? Can I?" Her Aunt nods, eyes forward, both of them falling into silence as the church service starts.

————————

"Aunt Pol?" Edith calls, pushing open the front door to her Aunt's house, Michael and Finn right behind her.

"She's probably busy Edith," Finn moans at the lack of reply from within the house, annoyed that his younger sister had pulled him away from the pub he had been in with Isiah. "Let's come back later."

"No." Edith states, pulling off her hat and scarf. "I told her we would be here so we're staying." Michael shrugs at Finn's frown as Edith walks further into the house. "Aunt Polly?" She calls again, her cousin and brother trailing behind her. "Ah, there you are."

"Edith," Polly says with a smile, looking up from where she was knelt stoking the fire. "Sorry love, I didn't hear you come in." She wraps her niece in a tight hug, Edith responding with equal force, sighing into the embrace. "I tidied up for you."

"Oh you didn't need to do that Pol," Edith replies softly, reluctantly breaking the hug to look at her Aunt. "It's just us." She motions with her head for Finn to greet their Aunt.

"Hi Aunt Pol," he says, giving her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek. "How are you?"

"Goodness me, I think you've grown again!" Polly jokes, Edith laughing from behind her. "You're feeding him to well Edith."

"He's eating us out of the house Aunt Pol." She chuckles earning an eye roll from her brother.

"I'm a growing man." He responds making the three of them laugh.

"Alright mum," Michael pipes up from the doorway, coming forward to wrap her in a hug. Polly smiles as they pull apart.

"Right, come on you lot. There's lunch waiting for you in the dining room." She says, leading them into the next room. Finn takes one look at Edith, a mischievous glint in his eye as he shoves her to the side in an attempt to get through the doorway first.

"Hey!" She shouts, letting out a yelp of surprise as she falls back into Michael who chuckles and shakes his head at the siblings' actions. "I'm gonna get you for that Finn Shelby! Get back here!" She yells, sprinting after her brother eliciting laughs from her Aunt and cousin.

————————

"Afternoon." Bonnie greets Edith brightly, hanging over the door to the stall.

"You found me." She replies with a grin, having found a stall near the back of the stable that was clean and empty. "Of course Mr Gold, please, do join me!" She mocks him playfully as he throws her a wink, flopping down on to the hay beside her.

"That would be lovely, thank you Miss Shelby." He teases in the same tone, pulling a packet out of his jacket pocket. "I brought cake." Edith grins and fishes in the hay beside her, pulling out a flask.

"And I brought tea." She says with a laugh, twisting the cup off the top. "A perfect picnic! Hope you don't mind sharing, I could only find the one cup; didn't think my Aunt Pol would be too pleased if she found out I'd brought her best China tea cups to the stable with me."

"Hmm, maybe not." Bonnie replies with a grin, ripping open the paper packaging and breaking the slice of cake in half with his hands. "Clean hands, promise!" He says, holding his hands out to Edith who laughs and pushes them away. The two teens sit in silence for a few minutes, sipping on their tea and taking bites out of their respective pieces of cake.

"So...come here often?" Edith jokes, nudging Bonnie's shoulder with hers.

"Well," Bonnie offers, glancing over at Edith, making eye contact with her. "There's this girl..."

"Oh?"

"Yup." Bonnie nods, resting his body weight onto one arm as he tilts his body towards her. "Heard she likes to spend her afternoons down here so I thought, why not go and see what she's up to?"

"Huh." Edith pulls on her curls, letting them fall around her face to hide her blush. "And this girl...what's she like?"

"Well, I don't know her that well..." Bonnie admits, reaching a hand out to brush some of her hair behind her ear. "But...she's good to animals...that indicates a good heart. In my opinion."

"Really?"

"I'd like to get to know her better." He admits, nodding at her question.

"Is that all?" Edith questions, watching as Bonnie gently turns her hand over, his fingers tracing the lines of her palm.

"Well," he starts again, quietly clearing his throat. "I might like to kiss her as well..."

"Ohh...might, huh?" Bonnie lets out a low chuckle at this, slowly beginning to lean forwards towards Edith.

"What do you think she would say to that?" He asks, voice barely above a whisper.

"I think she might say yes." At this, Edith leans up, closing the gap between them as she gently presses her lips to Bonnie's. She hums into the kiss, moving one hand up to cup his cheek as he smiles against her lips. They slowly pull away, foreheads resting together as they search each other's eyes. "What do you think he would say," Edith whispers "if she wanted to kiss him again."

"Eh, I think he might say yes." He chuckles in a teasing tone, repeating her own words back to her, sitting up so that he could wrap an arm around her waist, his other hand cupping the back of her neck as their lips connect again.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

AN: The next few chapters are going to be leading straight on from each other - I had to break them all up as it was getting quite long!

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Edith sighs, pushing herself up from the sofa she had been curled up in, at the pounding on the front door. She tries to lower the toddler in her arms down on to the sofa, receiving a squeak of protest from her youngest nephew. "Alright, alright." She soothes him, rubbing a hand up and down his back as she walks to the door.

"Mr Gold." She greets the gentlemen stood on her doorstep. "What can I do for you today?"

"We're here to see Tommy." He states, as if it were obvious. Edith leans her hip against the door frame, glancing over to Bonnie who was stood beside his father, a confused look etched on his face.

"You know he has his own office, right?" She questions "He doesn't live here."

"We were told to meet your brother here, so here we are." Aberama explains, motioning inside the house as he asks "So, may we come in?" Edith sighs again, stepping back from the doorway and allowing the two men to enter as the back door swings open revealing Tommy. Edith hurries over to him, giving a small smile as he runs his hand across the back of his nephews head.

"Really Tom?" She whispers as he pulls off his coat. "You couldn't have met them at your office? I'm not your secretary ya know. I don't greet your business associates for you."

"I know Edith," he responds, hand on her arm. "I was hoping to be back before they got here so I could tell you myself. It's just for today, this was the best place to meet." Edith narrows her eyes at her brother who squeezes her shoulder and begins to head towards Aberama and Bonnie. "How about you take the baby upstairs, eh?" Edith nods, shifting the baby on her hip and walking out past the men to the stairs.

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Edith stirs from her daydream at the sound of the door slamming downstairs. She glances down at the sleeping toddler in her arms, still holding him gently in the rocking chair of the spare room. She hears footsteps coming up the stairs, deciding to stay were she is, figuring her brother was heading her way. When Bonnie's figure fills the doorway she looks up in surprise.

"What are still doing here?" She asks. He motions inside the room, silently asking her he could enter; she nods and he pads softly in.

"Tommy and my dad have gone out." He explains, pulling up the chair from the desk so that he is sat opposite Edith. "They've asked me to stay here with you."

"Why?" She questions with a frown, sitting up straight and holding the baby closer to her.

"They've just told us to wait here until they get back." He replies vaguely with a shrug. Edith's frown deepens as Bonnie glances around the room.

"But why?" She repeats "Is it business? Something's going on?"

"I can't say." Bonnie says gently. Edith shakes her head with a sigh, eyeing the boy as she resumes her rocking in the chair. "Who's baby is that?"

"John's." She states, watching as his eyes rise to meet hers. "Did you really think he was mine?" She asks with a laugh. Bonnie shakes his head and leans back in his chair.

"I didn't know what to think." He explains "I hardly know you Edith."

"Yet you kissed me the other day..." she quips, nudging her foot against his shin.

He lets out a small chuckle, relaxing into his chair as he smiles at her in response. "Yes, I did."

"And you'd like to do it again?" She asks cheekily, biting her bottom lip trying to contain her grin.

"Edith!" Bonnie exclaims, letting out a surprised laugh. "There's a baby in the room!"

"Eh, he's asleep." Edith replies with a shrug, running her hand down her nephew's back. "He doesn't care."

"Still." He protests, deciding to change the subject for now. "What's his name?"

"Theodore. We call him Teddy."

"Cute nickname. How many children does your brother have?"

"Six. Esme, John's wife, she's desperate another girl." Edith explains with a laugh, pressing a kiss to the top of Teddy's head.

"Esme Lee?" Bonnie asks, smiling at Edith's actions

"Well, Shelby now, but yes, how did you know?" Bonnie lifts one shoulder, quirking his head to the side with another smile. "Of course." Edith says, not needing to hear his response. "I guess your family knows every other gypsy family around here, huh?"

"You're a gypsy too." He points out, sitting forwards in his chair, elbows resting on his knees. "Your mother was, right? And your father too."

"What, how did you..."

"My father felt it, remember?" Bonnie cuts her off gently.

"Right." Edith murmurs, thinking back to the first day she had met Aberama Gold.

"Can't hide it princess." Edith rolls her eyes, smiling nonetheless at the nickname Bonnie had given her. Teddy stirs in her arms letting out a soft whine, bringing the teens' attention back to the present.

"Shhh," Edith whispers, leaning her head down next to the toddler's, rising from her seat to place him on the bed in the corner of the room.

"How many other nephews and nieces do you have?" Bonnie asks, following Edith with his eyes.

"Nine. Ada, Tommy and Arthur all have one son each, John has five boys and one girl." she replies quietly, tucking the child into bed. "and one more on the way Polly bets."

"Esme's pregnant?"

"Polly thinks so. John hasn't said anything." Edith presses a final kiss to Teddy's cheek, before motioning for Bonnie to follow her out of the room.

"I haven't met your Aunt Polly yet." He comments as the pair head towards the stairs. "I think she's the only one I've not seen."

"No. She's not herself at the moment." Edith replies, her tone of voice indicating she didn't want to continue talking about the matter. Bonnie accepts this, following Edith into the kitchen where he watches her fill the kettle and place it on the stove.

"What?" She asks, turning to see him stood leaning against a chair intently watching her every move. "What?" She repeats with a nervous chuckle, pulling at a strand of hair as he shakes his head with a grin.

"Hmm," he hums, pushing away from the table and towards the counter she was leaning against. "How about that kiss you promised?" Edith ducks her head down with a smile, their faces inches apart when she looks back up, snaking her arms around his neck.

"Promised, huh?" She teases as Bonnie's arms wind loosely around her waist, gently tugging her closer to him so there was no room left between them. He smiles, leaning his head down to allow their lips to meet, slowly at first, deepening as Edith tightens her grip on him, running a hand from the back of his neck up into his hair. She sighs into the kiss, tugging gently on Bonnie's hair as his hands roam from her waist to her hips. He pulls back for air, both of them breathless as he trails feather light kisses down her neck to her shoulder where he stops with one final kiss as the kettle boils over with a whistle. Edith presses her final kiss above his ear, gently unwrapping his arms to tend to the stove. "Come on, I'll bring this into the living room." She says softly, rubbing a hand down his arm as he nods, catching her hand in his and pressing a kiss to the inside of her wrist before turning to head down the hallway.

————————

"Stop!" Edith giggles as Bonnie digs his fingers into her sides while peppering her neck with light kisses. "Bonnie!" She squeals, squirming in his arms until he finally relents, head falling into the curve of her neck as he laughs.

"Shhh!" He chides, still laughing himself. "You'll wake the baby." Edith sighs, laughter still rising in her chest, letting out a few giggles as she settles herself back into the comfortable position they had found. They were sat in front of the fire in the living room, Bonnie leaning against the arm of the sofa with Edith sat, back to his chest between his legs, stealing gentle kisses from each other as they talked. Edith lets out a breathy sigh, dropping her head backwards to land on Bonnie's shoulder, looking up at him through hooded eyes.

"What time is it?" She yawns, Bonnie turns his head to look at the clock behind them.

"Nearly 7 o'clock." He responds, intertwining their hands.

"It's getting late," she muses, closing her eyes and squeezing his hands in hers. "Why's Tommy not back yet?" At Bonnie's lack of response she opens her eyes again, looking up at him once more. "Bonnie." She says slowly, turning to fully look him in the eye. "Where's Tommy? What's going on?"

"It's just business," he tries to reassure her, holding her face gently in his hands. "Dad and Tommy said they had something to deal with. Something with your brothers. They didn't tell me what, thought that the less I knew the better it would be, what with me staying here with you and Teddy." Edith shakes her head, letting it fall against Bonnie's hands, him holding her head up.

"What about Michael?"

"I don't know." Bonnie replies honestly, shaking his head. "I guess he's with them, they didn't say."

"And why didn't they take you with them?"

"To stay here with you. They wanted you safe. I was the first option. I was here anyway, it just made sense. Hey. Hey, look at me Edith, look at me." He gently tugs Edith's head up to meet his eyes. "It's all gonna be fine love, ok?" She lets out a shaky breath, nodding her head slowly. "Come here. Let's take your mind off things, eh?" Bonnie doesn't wait for a response as he closes the gap between them once more.

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The front door slamming abruptly wakes Edith from her slumber against Bonnie, who had moved them to the sofa at some point during the evening.

"Shit!" She exclaims, quickly pushing herself off Bonnie, pulling at his arm to make him sit up as he watches her, bemused as she quickly moves to the armchair on the other side of the room, throwing herself into it.

"Edie?" Michael calls as he walks through the house to the living room.

"Hi," she calls softly, smiling at him as he sticks his head round the door. He lets out a silent breath, unbeknownst to Edith as he sees her, safe, in the armchair. The men they had been dealing with all evening had put Michael on edge, more so than he'd like to admit.

"You ok?" He asks, earning a confused look and a nod from his youngest cousin.

"Fine. Why?"

"Just wanted to make sure." He says before being nudged out of the way by John.

"Teddy upstairs?" Her brother asks abruptly, clearly still bitter from their argument at the previous family meeting; Edith rolls her eyes at the contrast in questions from her cousin and brother.

"Yeah." She replies, standing up to follow him upstairs. "He's been an angel." She says softly as John pushes the door to the spare bedroom open. "The other kids ok?"

"Yeah, they're with Esme and her family. Why?" He responds quickly, glancing back at his sister before bending to take his son in his arms.

"I was just wondering. It's not often you ask me to watch just Teddy and not the others too." she replies, smiling as she presses a kiss to Teddy's head, him stirring and reaching a hand out to his aunt. "Hi," she coos. "I love you."

"We're heading there now." John explains, rolling his eyes at Edith confused look. "To the Lee's camp. To meet Esme. She got the kids straight from school earlier, I wanted her to have some time to rest before she did, which is why I asked you to watch Teddy. I just didn't think I'd be this late to pick him up."

"It's fine." Edith says quietly, crossing her arms over her chest as they head back out of the room, eyeing the loose blades on John's cap. "What happened tonight?"

"Business."

"I don't need you to give me all the details John, but something would be good. I've been sat here all night worrying about you all."

"We're all fine." John assures her, nodding to Aberama and Bonnie as they reach the bottom of the stairs. "Just had to deal with some bad people, 'k?" Edith nods, pursing her lips in a frown as John heads to the door. She steps forward quickly, pressing a kiss to his cheek, one hand resting on Teddy's back. "I'll see ya later Edie, yeah? Finn's out back, he'll be in in a minute."

"Yeah. Night." She calls, leaning back against the banister.

"We'll be off too." Aberama says, swiftly following John out the door. "Goodnight Miss Shelby."

"Goodnight Mr Gold," she replies politely, glancing down as Bonnie's hand brushes hers as he walks past, fingers meeting very briefly.

"What the hell was that Edith?" Michael's exasperated voice carries through the hallway, making Edith jump as the door shuts behind the three men.

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AN: I'm not really sure how I want Michael to react yet, or what Edith's going to say...any ideas are welcome!


	5. Chapter5

Chapter 5

_"What the hell was that Edith?" _

'Shit!' Edith thinks to herself, pausing before turning to look at her cousin. "Uhhh..."

"In here." Michael demands, pointing at the living room. Edith sighs and shuffles down the hallway towards him.

"Michael, listen..."

"Fix your hair." He says, pointing at the mirror hanging above the fireplace. "You don't want Finn coming in and seeing your hair a mess like that."

"Fuck," Edith breathes, noticing the mess her braids that were pinned to the side of her hair were in, from Bonnie running his fingers through her hair. "How did John not notice?"

"He's a little preoccupied with Esme and the kids." Michael comments, taking a seat on the sofa and pulling out a cigarette. "And I don't think he really takes much notice in what you do to your hair. Thank goodness. Finn on the other hand...he sees you everyday, he'll know when your hair's messed up, he takes notice of things like that."

"Where is Finn anyway?" Edith asks, reclaiming her seat in the armchair.

"He's outside, a friend of his was waiting by the door when we got here."

"Friend? A girl? Was it Alice?" She questions her cousin, rising to move and see if she could spot what her brother was up to.

"Not a clue. Don't know who the fuck Alice is. Sit down Edith. You're not getting out of this that quickly." He replies, grabbing her hand as she goes to walk past him. Edith huffs and falls back on to the sofa as he gently pulls her backwards. "And tell me the truth."

"Fine!" Edith shines, flopping backwards so she was laid across the sofa, feet laid in Michael's lap. "We've been talking, just starting to get to know each other." She explains wiggling her feet in his lap.

"Stop that. I'm not giving you a foot rub." He states, lifting her feet and placing them back on the sofa.

"Oi!" She exclaims with a glare thrown in her cousins direction. "What's got you all moody?"

"Coming home to my cousin having been messing around with a boy all evening!" He growls, glaring back at her.

"We weren't doing anything wrong!" She exclaims "we just kissing! For goodness sake! I bet you've done worse! I sure as hell know Finn has!"

"Fucking hell, Edith." Michael groans, putting his head in his hands. "Keep your fucking voice down. You better hope that your brothers don't find out."

"Well they'll have to find out at some point!" She scoffs, rolling her eyes.

"And how do you think that will go down?" He responds, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Well, obviously not well. But it'll have to happen eventually!" She retorts. "Michael," she pleads, sitting up to look at him. "Please don't be mad. We really weren't doing anything wrong. And this was bound to happen at some point, right?"

"Edith." Michael sighs, turning to meet her eyes. "You know your brothers would go ballistic if they knew what you'd been up to all night, and that I let you get away with it?" She nods with a frown, pulling her knees into her chest.

"So you're going to tell them?" She asks quietly, letting out a sigh of relief when Michael shakes his head.

"No. But you are." He says, rising from the sofa. "Soon." She nods again, standing up to walk with him to the door.

"Please don't be mad." She repeats quietly as she gives him a hug goodbye.

"I'm not mad, Edith. Not happy, but I'm not angry. You need to be careful, ok?" Edith squeezes him tighter in response, burying her head in his chest as he sighs and hugs her back. "Go on, up to bed." He says, gently pushing her towards the stairs, where she sits, watching him pull on his coat as he leaves the house. She's still in the same place, head leaning against the banister when a Finn walks in through the front door.

"What are you doing there?" He asks, shrugging off his coat and unlacing his boots.

"Waiting to say goodnight to you." She replies, taking his hand to help pull her up, following him up the stairs.

————————

"Are you awake?" Edith calls later that evening, inching the door to Finn's room open slowly.

"Yeah. Come in." He replies, Edith slipping into the room, lit only by the candle beside Finn's bed, where he was laid, hands crossed on his chest, staring at the ceiling. "Can't sleep either?" He asks, not turning to look at her as she climbs on to the bed, resting her head on his chest.

"No." She whispers, hooking one arm around his waist as he moves his arm around her shoulders, holding her to him. "I was really scared tonight Finn."

"We were ok."

"I know. But I didn't know that all evening. Tommy didn't even tell me he was leaving, Bonnie did when Tom and Aberama were already gone. I feel like they don't tell me anything."

"They don't tell me anything either Edie."

"Yeah but, at least you get to go with them." She counters, Finn humming in agreement.

"Guess so. Sometimes." He says, sitting up to grab his hat from the side. "Think you could fix this for me?" He asks, handing her the cap. Edith nods, running her fingers around the edge until they meet the loose blades.

"Looks like it could do with a wash too."

"Hmm." Finn hums in agreement again, closing his eyes.

"Do you want me to leave you to sleep?" She asks gently, looking up at him as he shakes his head.

"Nah. You can stay."

"Ok." She says with a nod. "Have you got my book?" Finn reaches down beside him, pulling a book out from under the bed; Edith often kept things in his room, mostly pushed under the bed for times like this when they would either sit or lie together in silence, finding that if she had something to do, her mind would be calmer.

"Are you ok now?" Finn asks, eyes closed again as Edith settles herself beside him, curled up on her side so that she could read her book, but also watch the rise and fall of his chest as he slept.

"With my book?" She replies, glancing over at him.

"No. After this evening."

"Oh. Yeah. I guess so." She responds, brushing one of his curls off his forehead. "You're back, so that helps."

"I'm not going anywhere." He promises, giving her a sleepy smile. "Now shut up, I'm trying to sleep." Edith snorts back a laugh, punching his shoulder lightly before resting her head back on the pillow, bringing her book up to her eye-line, not reading a word as she watches him drift off to sleep.

————————

"I haven't seen Arthur in a while. Is he ok?" Edith asks a few days later, as she brings the dinner dishes to the sink.

"He's fine Edie." Tommy states, pulling a cigarette out of the holder

"Then where's he been?"

"With Linda." Tommy replies shortly, watching Edith closely as she sits down at the table beside him again.

"But he's safe." She questions, resting her elbow on the table, head cupped in her hand

"Yes. He's safe." He repeats

"And not hurt." Tommy hesitates before responding again, mentally taking count of the injuries their older brother had sustained earlier in the week. None life threatening, all enough to scare Edith, hence the decision being made to keep Arthur out of Small Heath until the worst had healed, not wanting to send her into unnecessary panic.

"He's fine Edith." He insists, pinching the bridge of his nose as Edith continues.

"But you wouldn't tell me even if he wasn't, would you?" She asks with a frown.

"Edith." He warns, she rolls her eyes and stands from the table, turning her back on Tommy as she reaches the sink. "If I say that he's fine, he is fine. He's with Linda and Billy. He's just taking some time away from Small Heath." Edith nods, not turning to face her brother.

"Fine." She eventually grounds out, finally turning to look Tommy in the eye. "Then I'll get Finn to drive me out there tomorrow. See how he is for myself." Tommy huffs, choking out a chuckle around his cigarette.

"So damn stubborn." He mumbles under his breath, Edith smiling to herself as she turns around again.

————————

It's gone midnight when Edith's bedroom door swings open, slamming on the wall; she bolts upright, clutching her blankets to her chest as she looks at the door in shock. Tommy had only left a few hours before, having spent the evening with his youngest siblings before heading back home to Charlie.

"Edith get up." Her brother demands, picking her coat off the peg on the back of her door, holding it open for her.

"What the fuck Tommy!" She yells, dropping her head backwards, looking up at the ceiling as she takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself.

"Up. Now." He says, pulling back the covers on the bed.

"Jesus Christ." She grumbles, slipping into her coat and reaching for her boots.

"Finn." Tommy moves across the hallway, banging his fist on his brother's door.

"Oh so you knock for him but come barging in for me?" Edith scoffs at her brother's actions, letting out a bitter laugh when he doesn't reply.

"Just get your shoes on Edith we need to leave."

"Why?" She asks

"Stop asking questions." Tommy orders, pointing finger at her.

"What's going on Tom?" Finn asks as he leaves his room, coat in hand.

"Michael's waiting for us in the car, we need to leave now. I'll explain when we get there."

"Get where?" Edith shouts, quickly following her brothers out to the car, huffing as she slides in the back beside Michael. "What the fuck is going on?"


	6. Chapter6

**Chapter 6**

**AN: this is a bit of a filler chapter! In response to a review I got, Edith is 17 and Finn is 18/19 I've changed the storyline a bit so Finn has lost his virginity before the show shows him to in season 4, and has a birthday some time in this story, but I won't be writing about that. Enjoy :)**

"The men we dealt with the other night," Tommy explains, pacing the length of the rug in his living room, cigarette in hand. "they're not going down without a fight." Curses are heard from the Peaky Blinders that fill the room; Edith glances around, eyes landing on Bonnie and his father who were stood closest to her brothers, leaning against a bookcase. Bonnie throws her a hint of a smile, enough to make her chest, tight with panic, loosen a little.

"So why are we here?" Ada asks, moving to sit beside her sister, sensing her unease.

"This is the safest place for you all to be." Arthur explains. "Together."

"But surely we're all just sitting ducks here." Edith states, meeting the eyes of her sister-in-laws who were also on edge about the situation.

"Better here than in Watery Lane." John supplies, looking up at Tommy who nods.

"But what about Aunt Pol?" She asks, realising no one had mentioned the fact their aunt had not joined them.

"Mum refused to leave her house Edith," Michael says from across the room. "She's going to be fine, there are Peaky boys at her house too."

"We're going out to fight this war..." Tommy picks up where he left off, stopping his pacing for a moment, only to be cut off by Edith.

"Now?" She exclaims, brows furrowed as she turns to her older sister for support. "It's 1 o'clock in the bloody morning!"

"Edith." Arthur snaps, stopping her with a lift of his hand.

"No time like the present Edie." Tommy says, watching his sister sink back into the sofa, sulking. "There will be Blinders surrounding the house. You'll be safe here until we get back. You'll not leave this room, you'll all stay together. Got it?" All the women nod, somewhat reluctantly.

"Edith?" Arthur growls, watching her for a response. She nods too, rolling her eyes at him.

"Jesus, yes. I'll stay here." She snaps. "Don't have a bloody death wish."

"Good. Then everything's settled. We'll leave when Johnny Dogs arrives with his men." The room falls into silence at this; Edith waits a moment longer before catching Bonnie's eye.

"I'm going to the bathroom." She declares, standing up, not letting her brothers stop her as she all but storms out of the room. She makes it part way down the corridor before ducking into a small alcove, her favourite hiding place in Tommy's house. Only a few minutes later, footsteps pad down the hallway towards Edith's hiding spot. Bonnie calls out her name softly, smiling as she catches his wrist in her hand as he passes her, pulling him into her hiding place.

"Managed to sneak out." He whispers, taking her in his arms gently. "Your brothers are talking strategies with my dad." Edith shivers involuntarily, not against the cold but more the fear that was rising in her.

"You have to go with them?" She asks quietly, Bonnie nodding in response. "Can't you stay with me again?"

"Not this time princess. It's all hands on deck." He replies gently

"Then I can come too." She says suddenly, pulling back in his arms to look him in the eye.

"No Edith." Bonnie states, pulling her closer again. "You're staying here." She sighs, collapsing into his arms.

"I'm scared Bonnie." Edith whispers, clutching handfuls of his shirt in her fists. He shushes her softly, running one hand through her hair, the other rubbing her back. They eventually break their embrace, realising they needed to get back to the living room before anyone noticed how long they'd been gone. Edith leans up to press a desperate kiss to Bonnie's lips before making their way back to the living room, slipping back in unnoticed.

————————

"Where did you and Bonnie go?" Ada asks quietly after the men had left, Edith curled up under her arm on the sofa they were sharing.

"Hmm?" Edith responds sleepily, blinking you at her sister.

"You and Bonnie. Don't even try to hide it Edith," Ada states, lifting Edith's chin with her fingers. "I can see it in your eyes." Edith sighs, her head falling back on to her sister's chest.

"We were in the hallway."

"Doing what?" Her sister questions, Edith glances up to make sure no one was listening. Satisfied that her sister-in-laws were definitely asleep and not eavesdropping on their conversation before continuing.

"Just talking." She says softly, relaxing in her sister's arms.

"Out there?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I wanted to talk to him in private." Edith responds. Ada hums and nods, considering the best way to approach the conversation of asking her sister what was going on between the two teens. The last thing the family needed that night was the youngest Shelby losing her temper, the two best people to calm her being out, goodness knows where, fighting an enemy.

"Are you...?" Edith cuts her off with a shrug before Ada can finish her question, knowing what the question was going to be.

"I don't really know." She replies quietly, twirling the rings on her fingers.

"But you want to be with him." Ada says, more of a statement than a question.

Edith nods slowly. "I do."

Ada sits in silence for a while, running her fingers through Edith's hair. "What's he like?"

"He's lovely. So sweet. And loving. He's fun Ada. So much fun to be around. We can just sit and talk and laugh for hours." Edith says with a smile, glancing up to see her sister's reaction. "I'd like to get to know him more though, better. I feel like I'm just barely touching the surface of who he his."

"It sounds like you really like him." Ada comments with a smile of her own. "You'll have to tell the boys."

"Not yet." She interrupts "Please Ada. I want to get to know him more first. See where this is going." Ada nods

"You'll have to stop sneaking off then," she chides. "Or they'll catch on, quicker than you want them to."

"Like you and Freddie?"

"It was different with me and Freddie," Ada replies with a sigh. "We weren't careful, we didn't think things through properly. Not like you will." Edith nods, sitting for a moment longer in silence, Ada reminiscing on her time with Freddie.

"But you approve?" Edith asks quietly, holding her breath for Ada's response.

"Of course I do!" Ada says "just be careful, yeah? And for goodness sake, tell the boys soon. You're not very good at hiding that smile around Bonnie anyway." Edith groans with a grin, hiding her face in Ada's side as the two sisters hold back laughs to refrain from waking the other women.


	7. Chapter7

**Chapter 7**

"Holy shit." Edith breathes, body turned towards the door as she watches her brothers and their friends walk into the room, each one bloodied and bruised in some way.

"Esme, find some cloths. Linda, alcohol. Lizzie, find us some bowls and fill them with hot water. Edith go and help her, see if you can find the bandages too." Ada commands, jumping up from the sofa, giving the women in the room jobs. "Jesus Christ Tommy, I thought you said you had everything under control."

"We did. Ada. Calm down." Tommy states, grabbing a bottle of whiskey from the side.

"Calm down!" Ada cries with a stoic laugh. "You've just walked in, in front of Edith, covered in blood. Covered, Thomas! You're bloody lucky the children are upstairs asleep!" She hisses

"Ada. Enough." Arthur steps in, holding a hand out between his siblings. "Now's not the time." Ada glances around, seeing the men in the room watching the interaction. She sighs, pulling her brother towards a sofa.

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"May I?" Edith asks softly, sitting on the arm of the armchair Bonnie was sat in. She gestures at his hands, knuckles cut up, Bonnie looks up at her with a small smile. She drags the small side table in front of him, placing the bowl and rags onto it, taking a bottle of alcohol from Ada as she passes. "Drink?" She asks, passing Bonnie the bottle, who nods and takes a swig, wincing at the slight burn in his throat. He sucks in a breath as Edith presses the rag to his bloodied knuckles, "Sorry," she whispers, he shakes his head in response.

"You're fine." He soothes. "Thank you Edith."

"Of course." She's silent for a while for talking again, "It's usually Ada and Pol that do this." Edith comments, Bonnie humming in confusion, watching her gently pass the cloth in her hand over the knuckles of his other hand. "Cleaning up the boys after a fight." She explains, Bonnie nods this time, giving her a smile in response.

"Guess it's your turn to learn." He says softly

"Wish I didn't have to." She replies with a frown

"Me too."

"That's a big cut on your head. Must have hurt." Bonnie raises his fingers to meet Edith's on his forehead, her tender touch barely meeting the open wound. "Esme'll probably have to do that one. Might need stitches."

"Can't you do it for me nurse Edith?" He asks with a wink making her blush

"Edith." John calls from across the room, the teens breaking their gaze from each other to look at her brother. "Ada needs your help." Edith nods, barely brushing her hand on Bonnie's as she stands, a silent goodbye they had adopted with each other.

"I think Bonnie's head might need stitching" Edith says quietly as she passes John and his wife. "Can you sort that Esme?" Esme nods, running a hand over Edith's shoulder with a smile as she passes.

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"Hi," Bonnie says, tapping on the door of the room Edith was sat in. "Hiding out again?" She smiles and motions for him to come in, patting the bed beside her.

"It's so busy down there." Edith comments as Bonnie nods, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"Are you ok?" He asks softly, taking her hand in his. She nods, pulling him to move so that he was leant against the headboard with her.

"Are you ok?" Edith runs her fingers softly over the cut on his forehead, carefully stitched closed by Esme.

"Better now." He replies, wrapping an arm around Edith's shoulder.

"I told Ada about us." She says, resting her head on his shoulder and intertwining their hands.

"You did?" He presses a kiss to the top of her head.

"Uh huh," Edith hums

"And what did you say?"

"Oh, how horrid you are...such a stinky, teenage boy...hey!" Bonnie playful lunges at Edith, pulling her down on the bed to tickle her. "Bonnie!" She squeals, mindful of being quiet so that her brother's don't hear and come upstairs. "I was joking!"

"Better be!" Bonnie laughs as Edith rights herself and begins to wrestle him back, quickly using her strength to get the upper hand, pinning him underneath her. Edith leans down, pressing kisses against his forehead, moving to his cheeks, peppering his face with kisses, moving from one side to the next before pausing, noses touching, Bonnie's eyes locked with hers, watching each other intently. Edith drops her head down again, trying to capture Bonnie's lips with her own, only to have him pull back, placing a finger to her lips. "Ah!" He says as she gasps in shock. "Take it back, and you can have a kiss." Edith giggles, dropping her head to his shoulder, nuzzling her head into his neck, pressing kisses there, Bonnie nearly giving in right there and then.

"Bonnie..." she whines jokingly, running her fingers through his hair as she turns her head to the side, watching him watch her.

"Yes?" Edith slides off his hips, tugging his shirt so that they were laid chest to chest on the bed.

"I'm sorry." She whispers, immediately crashing her lips to his in a hungry kiss. "You're lovely really." He laughs against her lips, one arm around her waist as he tangles a hand in her hair.

"Edith!" Tommy growls from the doorway of the room, catching her and Bonnie mid-kiss.

"Tommy!" Edith gasps, pushing Bonnie away, him cursing under his breath. "Tommy, wait!" She leaps over Bonnie, sat frozen on the bed as her brother steps into the room, placing both hands in his chest.

"What the fuck," Tommy grounds out, taking hold of Edith's wrists "is going on?"


	8. Chapter8

Chapter 8

_"What the fuck," Tommy grounds out, taking hold of Edith's wrists "is going on?"_

"It's nothing Tom! Please, stop!" She pushes on his chest, trying to stop him for moving any further towards Bonnie who had now risen from the bed.

"It didn't look like nothing." He states, locking eyes with Bonnie over Edith's shoulder. "You." Tommy points his finger at Bonnie, now stood just behind Edith, still pushing back on her brother's chest.

"We were just kissing!" Edith exclaims as Tommy lets go of her wrists, stalking over to the window where he stands, back to his sister, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it before speaking again. Edith watches on, gulping as she waits for Tommy to speak.

"I do not," he starts "want my baby sister, in a room with a boy, ALONE!" He roars, turning to face Edith who wraps her arms around herself. 'Don't lose your temper Edith,' she says to herself. 'Keep your calm. Getting angry won't help anything.'

"I'm..."

"You're 17 Edith! A child still!" He shouts, pointing at her with his cigarette.

"We weren't doing anything wrong Tommy!" She protests, her voice marching the volume of his.

"What's all this shouting about?" Arthur booms from the bottom of the stairs.

"No! Arthur! Everything's fine!" Edith yells back, clenching her fists as her sides, throwing Bonnie a fearful glance.

"What the fuck's happening in here, eh?" Arthur bellows as he walks into the room.

"I've just walked in," Tommy says slowly, turning to face him. "On..."

"No, Tommy, please! Edith shouts, cutting her brother off with her begs for him to stop, throwing him a pleading look.

"What the fuck, is going on?" Their older brother asks, growling under his breath, looking between Tommy and Edith, ignoring Bonnie for the time being.

"Tommy if you'll just..." Bonnie tries, Edith throwing him a small shake of her head, silently telling him to stop.

"No! You don't get to speak!" Tommy shouts, now turning to Bonnie. "I just walked in on him, kissing OUR EDITH!"

"I swear..." Arthur grounds out, also turning towards Bonnie.

"Woah! No!" Michael shouts, entering the room with Finn, John and Ada behind him, seeing Arthur, face full of fury heading towards Bonnie. He throws his hand out, Edith yelling in protest as she places herself between Arthur and Bonnie, Michael coming to stand directly in front of the oldest Shelby, hands outstretched.

"This is not a family meeting!" Edith explodes, head in hands. "I want you all out! Get out!"

"Edith," Ada says gently, placing her hand on her arm, trying in vain to sooth her sister who was clearly past remaining calm.

"No Ada. I want them out! They don't bloody listen!" Aberama watches on from the doorway, a bemused look on his face.

"Ok, she wants us out, let's go." Says Ada, trying to diffuse the situation.

"No Ada. We're talking about..." Tommy starts, only to be interrupted by Edith's yells.

"Get! Out! Of! My! Room!"

"Ok, enough." Finn finally steps in, taking Edith by the tops of her arms, knowing that the situation could not be fully diffused until him or Michael got Edith on her own to calm her, away from the anger of their older brothers. "Edith. Enough. Sit down, eh?" He implored, searching Edith's eyes.

"Finn." John growls, having remained silent until this point, throwing a pointed look at his brother, which gets ignored as Finn leads Edith to the bed.

"John this is not going to help." Ada says, following Finn's lead. "Let's just all take a step back, catch our breath." She grabs her brother's arm, pulling him towards the door, doing the same with Arthur and Tommy, all three throwing protests her way. "Michael?" Ada calls from the doorway, he nods, squeezing Edith's shoulder as he passes her, hunched over on the bed, head in her hands. Bonnie watches from beside the bed, glancing between Finn and Edith as Ada shuts the door behind the rest of the family.

"Bonnie." Finn says lowly. "Maybe you should give us a minute."

"No." Edith states, reaching out to grab Bonnie's hand in her own. "No. I want him to stay."

"Edith, love." Bonnie says gently, kneeling beside Edith, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "I'm going to let you talk to Finn alone, ok?"

"But my brothers..." she protests

"He'll be fine." Finn assures her, Edith's eyes flicking over to meet his. "Michael and Ada won't let them do anything stupid."

"Bonnie..." Edith whispers, locking eyes with him, silently asking him to stay.

"I'll stay right outside the door, eh?" Edith nods, reluctantly letting go of Bonnie's hand as he stands.

"Now." Finn says, also standing as Bonnie leaves the room. "What do you need? Huh?"

"A pen, and some paper?" She replies, Finn nodding and moving over to the dresser to find what she needed. "And a drink?" Finn nods again, passing Edith the pen and paper, pointing his finger at her.

"Stay there. I'll get one. Yeah?" She nods, sinking back to lie on the bed, Finn leaving to retrieve a bottle he kept in his own room across the hallway, the younger siblings both having been given a room in Tommy's house for when they stayed over. "Here." He says, holding the bottle of whiskey out to Edith who sits up enough to take a sip. "Only a little bit. Ok?" She nods again, passing it to him to take a swig, placing it down on the side when he's done. Edith rests the paper on the side table, bowing her head as she starts to scribble on it, Finn sitting silently beside her. This had become routine for the youngest Shelby's, in order to calm Edith from her temper; she would take the time to write down her anger, getting it out of her head and onto paper working as a method to calm her, doodling around the edges of the pages as her breathing returned to normal and her chest loosened again, the red mist in her head fading away. Finn watches until she is done, taking the paper from her, folding it and storing it in his jacket pocket until later in the day when she would take it back and put it into the fireplace. He shrugs off his jacket, flopping back on to the bed beside Edith, who had laid back down again, with a sigh. "Didn't think you'd calm down so quick." He quips earning a soft chuckle from his sister.

"Me neither. I feel calmer when you're with me." She comments, focusing on taking deep breaths. "How do you do that so quickly?"

"Huh?"

"Calm me down. Make me feel so safe."

"Magic!" Finn teases, wiggling his fingers in her face, making her laugh. "Hey! There's the smile!" She bats his hands away, sliding her body to the edge of the bed so that her head was hanging off the side. Finn copies her actions, a stance they had both adopted when they were younger, either hanging off the edge of a bed or sofa when left together. The pair sit in silence as they watch the clouds pass by the windows. "So, you and the Gold boy eh?" Edith sighs, resigning to the fact that they needed to have the conversation at some point.

"He has a name." She grumbles

"Sorry! Bonnie." Finn replies, holding his hands up in a sign of surrender. "You fucked him yet?"

"Finn!"

"I was joking!" He laughs, dodging his sister's raised fist. "You better not have!"

"Of course I haven't! We've only known each other a little while!"

"Egh!" Finn exclaims with a shake of his head "I don't want to think about you and a boy doing that!"

"You brought it up!" Edith bites back letting out a laugh in protest. "Anyway! You're one to talk with your one night stands!"

"Hey! That was once!" He defends himself, rolling his eyes.

"Are you angry?" Edith asks after they've laid together for a while, staring out of the window.

"Not like Tom and John and Arthur are."

"But you still are?" She asks, turning her head to look at him. "Angry at me?"

"Not angry Edie." He says gently, looking her way. "I don't like the idea of you and Bonnie anymore than they do. But we're teenagers."

"Yeah." Edith replies with a nod. "And the boys were too. So they shouldn't be so angry. Bonnie's a good guy."

"He might be, but you know they won't see that." Finn states

"I know."

"You're our baby sister..."

"But I'm not a baby! And we're not doing anything wrong!" Edith protests, throwing her hands in the air.

"Shh, I know. Breathe." Finn soothes, pushing her hands back down.

"We'll need to go back down there, right?"

"Yep." He says with a nod, helping Edith up. "You ready? I'll meet you down there, yeah?" Edith nods this time, following Finn out the door, stopping in front of Bonnie who was sat on the floor just outside the room.

"Hi." She says, holding out her hand to pull him up, humming contentedly as he pulls her into his arms.

"Can I do this? Or are your brothers gonna storm up here and cut me?" He asks, Edith chuckling against his chest.

"I'll keep you safe." She promises quietly, looking up at him, puckering her lips for a kiss. He laughs at her, leaning down to capture her lips with his.

"Edith. Come on." Finn calls from the bottom of the stairs, Edith groaning in response, reluctantly pulling away from Bonnie's embrace. She takes his hand in hers, leading him down the stairs towards the living room where she could hear her family talking.


	9. Chapter9

**Chapter 9**

Entering the living room, Edith found her siblings sat around the fire, Tommy, pacing once again, in front of them all. They all look up at the sound of the door opening, Finn slipping in first and taking a seat beside Ada; she raises her eyebrows at him in a silent question, asking how Edith was. He nods in reply, motioning with his head over his shoulder to Edith who had taken a seat on the one spare sofa, clutching Bonnie's hand in hers.

"Breathe." Finn mouths to her, Edith giving a small nod in reply, visibly gulping as she tightens her hold on Bonnie's hand.

"Now. We've talked with Ada and Michael and we've come to our senses..." Tommy says, stopping his pacing to face Edith, a pained expression on his face; it was obvious to them all that this was not a conversation he wanted to be having with his 'baby' sister, no matter the lengths Michael and Ada had gone to to persuade him otherwise. The two had gone to great lengths to try and bring out the softer side of the oldest Shelby boys, imploring them to give Edith her chance and try to keep the situation calm.

"Well," Arthur interrupts, sitting upright and clearing his throat.

Tommy cuts his older brother off with a pointed look, silently reminding him of the approach to the situation they had decided to take. "No. Arthur. We realise how we acted upstairs was..."

"Wrong?" Edith cuts in this time, raising her eyebrows.

"Edith, come on." Michael chides, narrowing his eye at his cousin who huffs and crosses her arms over her chest, motioning with one hand for Tommy to continue.

"We all agree that you've seemed happier since meeting Bonnie."

"Fucking hell." John mumbles under his breath, eyes locked on the floor, glass of whiskey in hand.

"What John?" Edith questions her brother, eyes focused on him until he meets her eye, no anger in her voice, purely wanting to hear from the one brother that had kept quiet throughout all of this.

"You're growing up Edith." He says with a frown, Edith letting out a small chuckle.

"Nooo...really?!" She teases, earning a small smile from John.

"I don't like it..." he starts, trailing off as he looks around the room for help, looking back to Edith with none of their siblings offer him any support.

"But you can't say no. Right? 'Cause that would be hypocritical." Edith states, Arthur scoffing at this.

"Big words for a little lady." He comments, Edith sticks her tongue out at him before continuing talking to John.

"'Cause you were younger than me when you met Martha. My age when you had Henry, right?"

"I think we've all established that in our eyes, you'll never be old enough, or find someone good enough, to be in a relationship. Nor you Ada." Tommy says, choosing to sit beside Arthur, lighting a cigarette as he does, Ada and Edith both rolling their eyes at this.

"But you'll allow it?" Edith asks, leaning forwards

"We'll allow it." John says, the youngest Shelby's watching as Tommy and Arthur clench their jaws.

"Michael?" Edith says, turning to their cousin who, like John had been keeping quiet.

"You know how I feel." He responds, taking a drag of his cigarette.

"Just don't fucking kiss in front of me, eh? Or I'll bloody cut ya." Arthur threatens

"Arthur!" Ada and Edith yell at the same time, looking incredulously at their brother.

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"Can I sit with you?" Edith asks John quietly, him and Esme looking up at her as she hovers beside them.

"I'll go see what the kids are up to." Esme says, kissing John and squeezing Edith's hand as she passes.

"You've been pretty quiet," Edith comments, dropping down beside her brother, manoeuvring his arm so that she was curled up, her head on his chest, his arm around her shoulders. He laughs at this, tucking her in to him with a kiss on the forehead. "Ada said you helped bring Arthur and Tommy around to the idea of me and Bonnie." John hums in response, taking a sip from his glass of whiskey. "Thank you."

"You made a good point earlier," he replies. "Tommy and Arthur were furious when Martha got pregnant the first time. I'd like to think that you'd have stuck up for me if you'd been old enough back then."

"Of course I would have."

"Which is why I did the same for you. We've all had first loves that the others don't approve of...truth be told, you could have done a lot worse than Bonnie Gold."

"Who knew you were a big softy for love?" Edith teases, ruffling her head into John's chest, him pushing her away in mock annoyance. "Thanks Johnny. I really do appreciate it."

"I know you do." He replies, pulling her back into his arms, Edith snuggling into his embrace as he grabs the blanket hanging on the arm of the sofa and throwing it over her.

"Hey!" She protests as it covers her head, pushing at his chest as he laughs at her.

"I second Arthur though," he says, turning serious again. "Don't fucking kiss in front of me. Or he's done. Got it."

"Jeez. I've got it!"

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"Do you want to go for a walk?" Edith asks, holding her hand out to Bonnie who was sat with a book in his lap, one he'd taken from one of the many bookcases in the living room. He nods and takes her hand in his, both of them staying silent until they make it out of the house and are heading into the garden.

"Dad's going to head off soon." Bonnie says, swinging their hands between them as Edith leads him through the garden.

"And you?" She asks quietly, somewhat afraid of his answer.

"I'm going to stay for a while. Dad's been talking to your brothers about getting me into the boxing ring in Small Heath." Edith smiles at this, butterflies fluttering in her stomach at the thought of being able to spend more time with Bonnie.

"Really?"

"Yeah." He replies, giving her hand a squeeze as he notices her smile.

"You box?" She asks, looking up at him.

"Have done since I was young."

"Huh..." Edith trails off, eyes on the ground as she thinks about what he had told her.

"Edith, if you're upset I didn't tell you..." He starts, only to be cut off

"No! No, I'm not! I'm just curious." She assures him

"Yeah?" Edith nods at this

"Are you any good?" She asks

"Well..." He says, trailing off with a slight blush.

"Think you could take on Finn?" She jokes, nudging her shoulder into his side gently.

"Do I even answer that? I kind of want to live..." he retorts, making them both laugh.

"I'd like to see you box." She says softly, Bonnie smiling to himself at this.

"I'd like to have you beside the ring." He replies, pulling her to a stop, both of them turning to look at each other.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yep. It'd be nice to have my girl there." He says, brushing the backs of his fingers over her cheek, gently tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Your girl, huh?"

"Well...I hope she's my girl..."

"I think she might be..." Edith says softly, leaning up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Bonnie's lips. "I'd not distract you?"

"Well...that depends..." He draws out with a smirk

"Depends on what?" She questions him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"What I get if I win..." He replies quietly, watching her reaction as her face breaks into a smile.

"Ah!" She responds, still looking up at him. "And what is it you'd like as a reward?"

"Hmmm...maybe this?" He leans down, capturing her lips with his again.

"Is that all?"

"What are you suggesting Miss Shelby?"

"Nothing..." she teases, throwing him a wink as she turns, continuing through the garden, Bonnie jogging to catch up with her.

"Where are you off to?"

"There's a summer house down here." Edith explains with a smile. "I bring the kids down here to get them out of the house, we store all the outdoor games down there."

"And what are we going to do there?" Edith wiggles her eyebrows with a wink, skipping off again as Bonnie throws his head back, cursing at the sky. "That girl is going to be the death of me." He mutters, following Edith who's still skipping away, smiling back at him as she beckons him to follow.

Edith grabs Bonnie by the shirt, dragging him into the summer house, locking the door behind her. She wraps her arms around his neck, rising onto her tiptoes to kiss him, Bonnie groans into the kiss, lifting her into his arms, Edith easily wrapping her legs around his hips. He carries her over to a chair, holding her to him as he sits, Edith pulling herself closer and running her hands through his hair.

"Bonnie..." she whimpers as he trails kisses down her neck, gently brushing her hair out of the way.

"Hmm?"

"I think I'm falling for you, Bonnie Gold." Edith whispers breathlessly, smiling, tilting her head back to allow him better access to her neck, sighing as she feels Bonnie smile against her neck, still pecking light kisses against her skin.

"I fell for you the minute I first kissed you." Bonnie replies, lifting his head to look her in the eyes. "Hard."

"You did?" She asks with a blush, still running her fingers through his hair.

"Uh huh." He responds, brushing his lips gently against hers in an impossibly light kiss as one of her hands comes down to gently caress his cheek. "Come here." Edith giggles, pressing her lips to his again, quickly deepening the kiss.

"God Bon," she moans as his hands begin to roam down her body, their caresses intensifying as both of them getting lost in the chance to finally be completely alone.

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"I want to take you away." Bonnie says softly, running his fingers through Edith's hair as she rests her head on his shoulder, still straddling his hips, arms wrapped around his body.

"What?" She asks, raising her head to meet his eyes. He smiles at her, running his fingers through the curls on the back of her head. "But my brothers...I can't leave them."

"Not forever," he protests, gently pushing her head back down on to his shoulder, Edith sighing contentedly, immediately relaxing back into his embrace, pressing a kiss to the skin exposed by the open top buttons of his shirt. "Just for the weekend. Somewhere we can really just be alone together, get to know each other away from everyone and everything."

"Hmm, that does sounds nice." She agrees, running her fingers up and down the back of his neck. "Like, in a caravan, or...?"

"Would you like that?"

"To travel with you, in a caravan?" Edith clarifies, Bonnie nodding in response. "Yes!"

"Yeah?"

"Yes! I've always wanted to go travelling in a caravan!" Bonnie laughs at this as she wraps her arms around him in a tight hug.

"You have?"

"Yes!"

"Why?" He laughs incredulously

"I'm a gypsy! But I've never traveled around in a caravan! How tragic is that?"

"Very tragic!" Bonnie teases lightly

"You'd be fulfilling a long-standing dream of mine Bon!" She says dramatically, letting her head drop back as she closed her eyes.

"I would?" He asks, still laughing at her antics

"Uh huh!" She nods enthusiastically, making Bonnie's smile grow.

"Well we'd better do it then!" He says, pressing a kiss to her lips

"Now?" She asks excitedly, pulling back to look him in the eye, hands still resting on his cheeks from the kiss.

"No, not now Edith!" He laughs "your brothers would kill me if I just randomly whisked you away in a caravan."

"They might kill you anyway." She jokes with a wink.

"Hey!" He gasps jokingly, pinching her hip lightly.

"It's true..." she sings, resting her forehead on his.

"Maybe we'll just have to stay in Small Heath then." He teases back

"No! I'm joking! Please Bon!" Edith exclaims, righting herself to look him in the eye again.

"Ssh, relax!" He says softly, cupping her cheek in one hand, running the other soothingly down her back. "We can go, of course we can. How about this weekend?"

"Just for the weekend?" she pouts, Bonnie pressing a kiss to her lips again as she does, Edith immediately sighs into the kiss and deepens it, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself closer to him in his arms. "God, I can't wait to do that, all, weekend, long." She whispers, pecking kisses on his lip to punctate her words.

"I thought you were just complaining about it being for a weekend." He teases with a wink, stealing his own light kisses from her.

"Hmmm," she replies, tilting her head as she locks eyes with him, running her hands through his hair. "It's just short. That's all."

"Love, I think we need to build up to taking you away from your brothers for longer than that. We'll do some short trips for now, huh?" Edith nods, her grin reaching from ear to ear.

"I'm so excited!" She giggles, wiggling in his arms.

"I am too." Bonnie replies with a grin of his own, running his fingers up and down her back. "But for now...I think we'd better get you back to the house."

"Nooo!" Edith pouts, burrowing her head back in Bonnie's neck.

"Yes, Edith. Come on, love." He says, patting her back lightly, shifting her body forwards to get her to stand. She pouts again with a huff, Bonnie smirking at this as she steals one more loving kiss, before standing and taking his hand as they leave the summer house.

**AN: hope you guys enjoyed - just to clarify, Edith is still 17 here so nothing non-age appropriate between Bonnie and Edith has happened! :) **


	10. Chapter10

**Chapter 10**

"No." Tommy states, not looking up from the paperwork on his desk, at his sister who was stood in front of him.

"What?" Edith asks incredulously, furrowing her brow.

"No." Tommy repeats, eyes still glued to the desk.

"I wasn't asking for your permission. I was telling you. I'm going away for the weekend with Bonnie." Edith states, crossing her arms over her chest.

"And I'm saying no."

"Tommy! Why?" She demands, throwing herself into a chair opposite him.

"You are not going away by yourself, with that boy." He explains, lighting a cigarette as he finally looks up at Edith.

"That boy, has a name." She grounds out, immediately furious at her brother.

"No Edith. That's my final answer."

"I'm nearly 18 Tommy!" She protests, snatching the paper off his desk, bringing his attention back to her.

"I don't care Edith. While you are under my care, you are not going away with a boy by yourself. No." He retorts, snatching the papers back from her.

"Oh right." She scoffs. "So I'm under your care am I? When? When do you care for me Tommy?"

"Edith! Do not talk to me like that."

"No, tell me Tom. When? I live with Finn, Thomas! Not you! You're never here! I don't live in your house! You don't get to tell me what to do!" She all but shouts, temper flaring as she stands again, leaning over the desk towards her brother.

"Yes. I do." He grounds out, pushing her shoulder, hard enough to knock her back into the chair, but not enough to hurt her.

"I really can't stand you sometimes Tommy." She spits, kicking her foot out against the table, jolting the desk and as a result, jogging his hand where he was writing on the paper.

"Yeah? Well I can't stand your attitude." He retorts, sending her a glare.

"Wow. Really mature." Edith mocks

"Like you can talk!"

"Ya know what? Piss off Tommy. I'm going away with Bonnie whether you like it or not." She states, leaning forwards in her chair to look him in the eye.

"Ha. Dream on princess." Tommy laughs, shaking his head in amusement.

"Fuck you!" Edith exclaims, standing up and shrugging on her coat, storming to the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Tommy calls after her, rising from his desk.

"To Aunt Pol." She states, taking hold of the door handle, pausing to see if Tommy had anything else to add.

"And how are you going to get there?" He asks, with an amused chuckle.

"I'll walk." She says stubbornly, back still turned to him.

"Don't be stupid. That's miles away."

"Don't call me stupid! You're so fucking rude Thomas Shelby."

"Stop swearing at me!" Tommy shouts

"Fuck. Off." Edith snaps, over her shoulder, slamming the door behind her.

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"Get in Edith." John calls through the open window as he drives slowly alongside her.

"No." She snaps, still angry from her conversation with Tommy.

"Edith." John shouts, still moving at a snails pace beside her.

"Go away John." She calls back, not turning to look at him.

"Not gonna happen. Come on. In." John stops the car beside his sister, leaning over to open the passenger door for her to get in. "Now. Where are we off to?"

"Aunt Pol's." Edith says stubbornly, getting into the car and looking anywhere but at her older brother.

"Ok."

"You're not going to ask why?" She asks, glancing his way as he shrugs.

"Nope." He says. "We've all gone running to Aunt Pol at some point."

"How did you know I was here?"

"I didn't. Heard you and Tommy shouting in his office. I was heading home anyway. Saw you. Thought I'd pick you up on the way." John replies

"But Aunt Pol's is out of your way. I'll just walk John." Edith protests, reaching for the door.

"No! Don't touch that door handle Edith. I'll drive you. It's fine." He insists, reaching one hand out across his sister's body to gently grab her wrist.

"Thank you." She says softly, leaning back in the seat.

"Of course." He replies, focusing back on the road, increasing the speed of the car. "What were you shouting about?"

"I'm going away with Bonnie for the weekend." Edith says, twirling the rings on her fingers, a nervous habit she had picked up.

"Are you?" Her brother asks with a frown, eyes still locked on the road in front of them.

"Yes."

"And what did Tommy say?" He questions

"Fuck Tommy and what he says." She states, making John scoff and shake his head.

"Really?" He asks incredulously

"Yes." She repeats, crossing her arms over her chest, once again looking out of the window and away from her brother.

"Huh."

The pair sit in silence for a few minutes as Edith considers her brother's response. "You don't think I should?"

"I think you're young...and it's not the best idea." John replies carefully, attempting to keep his sister's temper in check.

"Why? So you're going to try and stop me too?" She demands, turning her head to look at him.

John sighs, rubbing his forehead with one hand. "No. But you need to be so careful Edith."

"I'm not going to get pregnant if that's what you're worried about?" She bites out, scowling at him.

"Edith I really don't want to be talking about you getting pregnant." John groans with a frown of his own.

"But that's what you're all worried about, right?"

"Edith." He sighs again, frowning. "We just know what it's like when you get caught up in the moment..."

"But I'm not going to! I'm not stupid! I'm not going to have sex or have a baby..."

"You say that now..." he begins, raising his eyebrows.

"I'm not! For goodness sake! I promise. Ok?John? Ok?" Edith says, begging her brother to side with her.

John shrugs. "I don't think you should go Edith. Not yet."

"Why the fuck not?" She exclaims, angry now at how her brother is acting.

"Because you're still a child!" He shouts, his volume and anger matching hers. "You shouldn't be fucking off to who know's where for the weekend with a boy you hardly know, that _we _hardly know!"

"Oh so it's all about you boys then is it? You don't care what I want either? It's all 'do as we say, not as we do' with you lot. It's fucking ridiculous. You're so fucking hypocritical! One minute you're all 'yeah, be with him, we approve, I was having kids at your age anyway'" she mocks him, deepening her voice. "And the next you're all 'I don't think you should go. It's a bad idea' What's changed?"

"Don't be rude Edith. I know you're upset but that's enough." John all but shouts, glancing between the road and his sister who was shooting him daggers.

"Fuck you. Let me out. I'll walk from here." This time Edith does grab the door handle, John stopping the car immediately with a yell as she goes to swing the door open. "Edith Mary Shelby. Get back in the car. Now." Edith pretends to ignore him, quickly walking off down the road away from John, who sits in the car, watching her go, deciding to let her walk the last short bit to Polly's house to cool off.

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"Can I stay here tonight?" Edith asks when Polly answers the door, soaking wet from the rain storm that had started just after she had jumped out of John's car, tears welling in her eyes.

"Oh sweetheart." Polly coos, pulling her niece into her arms. "Of course you can." Edith falls into Polly's embrace, her body shaking with silent sobs, her emotions raging with her anger at her brothers, self-pity for having walked in the rain, and sadness that she knew, in reality, there was no way she was going to be able to sneak off with Bonnie for the weekend. "Come on, let's get you dried off." Polly says, leading Edith into the house.

Edith sat, watching as her Aunt made her up a warm bath, engulfed in a pair of Polly's pyjamas and wrapped in warm towels to fight off the chill.

"Come on then, in you get." Polly says, rising from beside the tub. "We'll get you warm again and then you can tell me what's happened." Edith strips in the middle of the room, stepping into the warm bath water, sinking in with a sigh, tears forming in her eyes again.

"I got into a fight with Tommy. Then with John." She explains, voice wobbly as Polly hands her a bar of soap.

"Now that's nothing to get so upset about," Polly soothes, brushing Edith's hair back from her face. "That happens all the time. We can fix it."

"I said some really mean things Aunt Pol." She clarifies, ducking her head in shame.

"And what was the argument about?" Her Aunt asks softly, settling herself on to the floor beside the tub.

"I've been seeing this boy, Bonnie Gold..." Edith begins, resting her head on the side of the tub to look at her Aunt.

"Ah yes, Ada told me about him when she came around the other day. Sounds like a nice boy." Polly replies, still threading her fingers gently through her niece's hair.

"He is! He's lovely Aunt Pol! And he wants to take me away for the weekend!" Edith exclaims in reply, smiling for the first time since arriving at Polly's house.

"But your brothers don't approve." Polly responds, more of a statement than a question.

"I don't know why!" Edith states, tears welling in her eyes again.

"Because you're their baby Edith." Polly says gently, watching as the tears stream down her niece's face. "And it's going to be hard for them to let go."

"I know!" Edith wails, throwing her head back. "But it's not fair!"

"Hush now, come on Edith." Her aunt soothes. "It all seems terrible now, but it'll blow over. You need to give it time. Just relax for now, eh? I'll make us a cup of tea."

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"Hi, thought I'd find you here." Bonnie says as Edith answers the door to Polly's house.

"How did you know?" She asked with a smile, beckoning him in.

"Finn told me." He replies, hanging his coat on the stand by the door.

"How did he know?"

"Tommy." At Edith's grumble, Bonnie tugs her into his arms, tucking her under his chin as she wraps her arms around him in a tight hug.

"Did he tell you what happened?" She mumbles into his chest, the vibrations from her voice making Bonnie laugh.

"He did."

"I'm still angry." Edith replies as Bonnie leans down and presses a kiss to the top of her head, rubbing his hands up and down her back.

"I know. I can feel it. You're so tense love." He says softly, lifting her head to look up at him, hands gently cupping her cheeks as he leans down to kiss her. "Let's go and sit down, huh? We'll figure this out."

"It's not fair, Bon." Edith says tearfully as she curls into Bonnie's side, his fingers running through her hair as she fiddles with the rings on her fingers.

"I know." He replies, pressing a kiss on the top of her head. "Hey, don't get upset." He softly brushes the tears from her face, kissing the tracks they had made down her cheeks.

"But they're not going to let us go."

"If we don't go this weekend, we'll talk to your brothers, bring them round to the idea, and go another time."

"I want to go away with you though!"

"And we will, love. We will." Bonnie says, holding her tightly in his arms. "But if your brothers are saying no for this weekend, then we can't go this weekend. We can't go against their wishes."

"I know." Edith sighs, burrowing her head into Bonnie's chest. "They just make me so damn angry!" Bonnie runs his hands up and down her back again, waiting for her body to relax against his before speaking again.

"How about we talk to Finn first, get him on board, and then we'll talk to the others?" He suggests, pressing light kiss to the top of Edith's head.

"Finn won't have a problem with it, neither will Ada or Michael...well, maybe Michael, but I can talk to him." She mumbles in response, his motions making her relax further into his arms.

"Then let's head back into Small Heath and get this sorted, huh? It'll help you feel better Edith, if you just talk to them." Bonnie says, gently lifting Edith's head up to look at him. She nods, leaning up to rest her forehead against his.

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"I wanted to apologise - Arthur please, I'm really trying here!" Edith shoots at her oldest brother, who had let out a snort of laughter at her statement.

"Sorry, sorry! Carry on." Ada shoots Arthur a glare of her own as he tries to hide his laughter over his youngest sister, who was not known for backing down in from a major argument with her older brothers, or apologising, especially in front of the whole family, her stubborn nature often prevailing, trying to do exactly that.

"I'm sorry Tommy, and John, I shouldn't have spoken to you how I did. But please, will you just hear me out?" At this, Tommy motions for her to carry on, Edith letting out a sigh of relief and slightly loosening her grip on Bonnie's hand. "I would really appreciate it if you would at least consider the idea of Bonnie and I going away for a weekend. I promise Tom, I do, that we'll be sensible! I haven't been out of Small Heath in so long, and I'd really love to travel a bit, like you all did when you were younger!"

"Leaving Small Heath is not the problem Edith." Tommy counters, Edith sighs in exasperation, turning to Bonnie, silently saying to him with her eyes 'See! I've tried!'

"What Edith is trying to say," Bonnie continues, throwing his girlfriend a look in response, telling her to keep her composure. "Is that we're not going to do anything that you all wouldn't approve of. All we want is some time, away from Peaky business, to get to know each other more. And I can promise you, I will be completely respectful of Edith, and of your wishes, whatever they may be."

"Look. Let's face it," Ada cuts in, throwing an encouraging smile at Edith and Bonnie. "Edith's nearly an adult, she's proved to all of us that she is independent and can look after herself. She's our little sister, and I would hope that we all know her well enough to trust, that she will respect that what we say goes. And with that in mind, I think it's time that we give her the opportunity to have a little breathing space, start to figure things out on her own a little more, without all of you, breathing down her neck!" At this, Ada looks around the room, pointing at her older brothers.

"I second that." Finn pipes up, raising his hand. "John, she looks after your babies for god sake, she's clearly responsible and sensible. And if she says that's how her and Bonnie are going to be, that's what gonna happen. Come on! We all know that!"

"But why if something did happen, huh Finn? Then what?" Arthur jumps in now, leaning forward in his chair.

"Like what?" Michael asks, deciding to join the conversation and help his youngest cousin out.

"Like...anything!" Arthur grumbles

"I'll make sure nothing happens." Bonnie assures Arthur. "I promise. No harm will come to Edith. None."

"I should hope so." John murmurs from the corner of the room.

"So we can go?" Edith asks, sitting up right in her chair.

"Woah, slow down Edith!" Tommy says, stepping forwards. "I think we should vote on this."

"Oh for fuck sake." Edith mutters, sinking back into the chair.

"Tommy..." Ada starts, rolling her eyes.

"No, Ada. This is how we do it in this family. All those in favour?" Tommy asks, Ada, Finn and Michael immediately raising their hands, John glances at his older brothers, before joining them and raising his hand as well. Edith grins, practically bouncing in her seat as she turns to Bonnie. Unbeknownst to the young couple, Michael had witnessed Ada and Finn cornering John before the meeting, moving quickly from begging their brother, to threatening him (of what, they wouldn't tell Michael), to side with them during the meeting.

"I guess that's settled then!" She says, throwing her older siblings and cousins grateful smiles.

"Uh, no! Wait a minute!" Arthur protests, rising from his chair.

"No, Arthur. We voted." Ada quips, winking at Edith.

"Tommy!" Arthur implores, motioning to Edith and Bonnie. "You can't be serious!"

"Ada's right Arthur, we voted, 4 against 2." Tommy replies, downing the last of his whiskey and turning away from his siblings to head back to work.


	11. Chapter11

**Chapter 11**

The minute the sun was up on Friday morning, Edith was awake, pottering quietly around the house, gathering the last things she needed for her trip with Bonnie. With the time drawing closer to Bonnie picking her up, Edith curls herself up on the sofa closest to the window in the living room, watching out for Bonnie to come walking down the street. The minute she spots him at the top of the lane, she runs to the front door, swinging it open and hanging out of it as she watches him smile, letting out a chuckle at her enthusiasm.

"Good morning!" Edith says, a big grin plastered to her face as he reaches the house, flinging her arms around his neck as he lifts her off her feet with an arm around her waist, shutting the door behind them with the other, Edith pulling him in for a passionate kiss.

"Good morning to you too!" He teases, stealing one last lingering kiss before pulling away. "You ready?"

"Yeah!" Edith replies breathlessly, her eyes twinkling with excitement. "I just need to say bye to Finn." She says, jogging up the stairs to wake her brother.

"Finn," she whispers, poking him in the arm as she leans down to press a kiss to his cheek. "I'm going."

"Mmm, Edith, piss off." He groans, batting her hands away as she continues poking his arm.

"I'm going." She repeats, Finn groaning again still batting her hands away.

"Have a good time. Be careful." He yawns, patting her cheek before rolling over. Edith rolls her eyes, kneeling beside him on the bed to press another kiss to his cheek.

"Bye! Love you too, I'll miss you so much!" She teases as he pushes her off the bed.

"Yeah, yeah, love you too, now shoo." He responds, tucking the covers around himself as she ruffles his hair and heads out the door.

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"So, where are we going?" Edith asks, wrapping her arms around Bonnie's waist, looking up at him expectantly as they reach the caravan he had borrowed from his dad.

"I was thinking we could go to the beach," he replies, wrapping his arms around her, smiling as her grin grows impossibly wider. "How does that sound?" Edith squeals excitedly, making Bonnie laugh as she wraps her arms around his neck, him lifting her off her feet again as he holds her to him. "Come on. Let's get going."

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"It's been years since I've been to the beach." Edith breathes out, inhaling the sea air as Bonnie stabilises the caravan in the spot they were going to stay. Satisfied with the job, Bonnie walks up behind Edith who was stood at the top of the small hill that overlooked the beach. "I can't believe we're really here." Bonnie smiles to himself, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her gently back into his arms, bending his head to press feather light kisses down her neck, making her sigh.

"Me neither." He says, resting his chin on her shoulder as they stand and watch the waves. "I can't believe I've got you all to myself." Edith turns in his arms, grinning as she leans up to kiss him softly.

"Come on! Race ya!" She exclaims, catching him off guard as she breaks the kiss, taking off down the hill; Bonnie laughs, smiling at her squeals as she runs through the grass, catching up with her as they reach the sand, wrapping an arm around her waist and swinging her into his arms, spinning her around. As soon as Edith's feet hit the floor, she takes off again, zigzagging through the sand with Bonnie hot on her heels, both of them laughing and shrieking as they dodge each other's grasps. Edith, breathless from chasing Bonnie along the beach, flops back on to the sand, pulling Bonnie down with her, both of them still laughing as they tried to slow their breathing.

"I'm so happy, Bonnie." Edith sighs, stretching out in the sand, lacing her fingers through his.

"Me too." He replies, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"Wanna go in the water?" She asks, turning to face Bonnie, excitement lacing her voice.

"It'll be freezing love!" He laughs in response

"We can't not go in though!" She protests with a whine, throwing him a pout and batting her eyelashes.

"Go on then!" He says with a laugh, motioning to the sea. Edith jumps up, resigning to the fact he probably won't be joining her, pressing a kiss to Bonnie's lips as she pulls off her boots and starts running towards the water.

"Oooh! It's freezing!" Edith squeals, bouncing on her toes as she steps into the waves, holding her skirt above the water as she hops deeper into the waves.

"Told ya!" Bonnie calls back teasingly, pushing himself up on to his elbows so he could watch her. He laughs as she jumps, trying to dodge the waves, nearly falling into the water as she does. "Careful!"

"Come here!" Edith shouts, releasing one side of her skirt to beckon him over, shrieking as the fabric skims the water. Bonnie laughs, reluctantly standing, pulling off his boots as she had done minutes earlier, rolling up his trouser legs as he heads down the beach towards her.

"Nah!" He exclaims, jumping out of the water as the waves trickle over his feet. "No way!"

"Don't be a baby!" Edith calls with a laugh, skirt pulled up around her thighs as she inches deeper into the water. Bonnie steps forward again, shivering as the cold water hits him.

"No Edith!" He calls again, both of them laughing. "It's bloody freezing! I'm going back to the sand!"

"Wait!" She shouts back, wading through the water towards him as he heads back to where they had been sat. She runs up behind him, jumping on to his back; Bonnie stumbles slightly under the unexpected weight of her body, righting himself quickly and taking hold of her as he trudges back through the sand. He drops her gently to the ground, settling down behind her as she pulls her knees up to her chest, positioning herself in between his legs, her back to his chest. Edith sighs in contentment as she leans back into him, his arms coming around to circle her body, pulling her tighter into his embrace.

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"Mmm, thank you!" Edith says gratefully, taking the bowl of food Bonnie was holding out for her. After hours of chasing each other along the beach, laying in the sun, and jumping through the waves (more so Edith than Bonnie, who still seemed unsure of going in too far against the cold water), the pair had slowly made their way back to the caravan. Bonnie had immediately lit a fire, taking blankets from the caravan to wrap Edith in to keep her warm as he prepared and cooked their dinner. "You never told me you could cook!"

"You never asked!" He retorts with a wink as he grabs his own bowl and sits beside her.

"Touché," she replies with a wink of her own, taking a spoonful of the stew. "This is really good Bon."

"Thanks." He says, digging into his own meal. "Are you warm enough?"

"Mhmm," Edith hums in response, mouth too full to talk. "Might need some extra warmth later though."

"Oh yeah?" Bonnie questions, raising his eyebrows.

"Mhmm."

"More blankets?" He suggests, watching Edith out of the corner of his eye.

"Hmm, I was thinking...more cuddles." She corrects, throwing him a cheeky smile.

"Ah!" Bonnie laughs, nodding slowly.

"Very effective in maintaining warmth." Edith comments with a shrug, continuing to eat the food in front of her.

"Is it now?" He asks with a smirk, Edith nodding in response.

"It is." She states, letting slip a smirk of her own.

"Guess we'll have to prove that theory then." Bonnie nudges his shoulder against hers with a laugh.

"I'd be happy to!" She sings, still smiling cheekily up at him.

————————

Later that evening, Bonnie and Edith sat around the fire, wrapped in blankets; they each had one blanket and an extra one wrapped around both of their shoulders, the teens snuggled up together.

"Bonnie?" Edith says softly, rubbing circles into the back of his hand with her thumb.

"Hmm?" He hums sleepily in response, his head resting on top of Edith's, who's head was resting on his shoulder.

"What do you want to do?" She asks, Bonnie turning his head to press a kiss to the top of her head. "Like, in life?"

"In life?" He repeats, swapping his hand in hers to wrap an arm around her shoulders as she nods in response. "Well...I want to be a boxer, professionally I mean. I don't really have a plan B, or a plan after that. I guess I'd just travel with my family for a while, whilst I figure out what's next." Edith hums. "Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering," she replies. "We've never talked about it. I just want to get to know you better."

"Well, that's always been my dream. Never really had any other interests if I'm honest. I never even thought I'd get that opportunity, I figured I'd always just travel with my family, help dad out with the little girls." Bonnie admits, tucking her tighter into his body.

"You don't talk about your sisters much." She comments, leaning into him.

"What do you want to know?" He asks

"I want to meet them!" Edith exclaims, making Bonnie laugh.

"One day love." He says gently, kissing the top of her head. "They never hang around one place for too long. My oldest sister Gwen, she's married to Timothy, they have two children, Nicholas and Ruth." He explains, the hand resting around her shoulder coming to rub circles there. "My other older sister is called Iris, she's married to Joseph, they don't have any children, but they look after Nelly and Annie, my younger sisters while dad and I are away."

"Do they stay together?" Edith asks, leaning up to press a kiss to Bonnie's jaw.

"For the most part," he replies. "They split off occasionally but not often. I think they like being together."

"Do you miss it? Travelling with them?"

"I do." Bonnie admits. "But at the same time, it's nice to get away for a bit, ya know? Like you with your brothers." Edith hums and nods in understanding.

"Will you tell me more about them?" She asks, peering up at him.

"Another time love," he says softly, pulling Edith closer as she lets out a shiver. "It's getting dark out here, you cold?"

"A little." She admits, curling into his arms.

"Let's go inside, eh?" Bonnie stands first, putting out the fire before holding out his hand to pull Edith up and leads her into the caravan. Once inside, he tugs her gently into his arms on the small bed, blankets still wrapped tightly around them both. "What do you want when you're older?" He continues their earlier conversation, Edith resting her head on his chest.

"I want to have a family." She states, tracing circles on his chest. "A big one. Like mine."

"Oh yeah?" Bonnie asks with a smile, running his fingers through her hair.

"Yeah. All joking aside, as much as my brothers get on my nerves, I've always loved being part of a big family. Having older siblings to go to when I need them." Edith admits, wrapping an arm around Bonnie's back to pull herself closer to him.

"What else?" He asks gently, gathering that she hadn't finished.

"And I want to travel. Go back to my gypsy roots a bit. I don't want to be part of the family business."

"You don't?" Bonnie asks in surprise.

"No." She states with a shake of her head. "I help the boys out because they ask me to, and I want to spend more time with them. With the company growing, they're so busy all the time, so I'll take any time I can with them. But it's not something I want to go in to. I want to create my own path."

"What do you think you'd want to do?"

"I think I'd like to do something with animals, horses maybe. Like train them for races. Or have my own stable like my Uncle Charlie." Edith replies with a smile.

"I can see you doing that." Bonnie says, moving his hand to run it up and down her back. "Running the show. With all your babies running around at your feet." Edith lets out a laugh at this, Bonnie smiling too.

"I'd love that." She replies, turning to cuddle into Bonnie's side. "Do you want children?"

"I do." He says with a nod. "But if I'm honest, I haven't ever really thought about it."

"But you know you do?" She clarifies, looking up at him. He gives her a small smile in return, looking down at her, but remaining silent. "What? What are you thinking about?"

"It's nothing." Bonnie says, shaking his head, Edith frowning at this.

"Bon? What is it?" She presses, running her fingers through his hair.

"Before now, I didn't know that I definitely did. I was never really interested in having a family, having little sisters running around and getting in the way used to annoy me. But I think as I've gotten older, I've realised that actually it is something I want one day. With the right person. I want a life where I'm happy and enjoying the things I do, and have someone to come home to at the end of the day. And you've shown me that." He says quietly, looking forwards, a small smile on his face. 'And I want that with you.' He adds silently in his head, turning his head to look Edith in the eyes.

"Bonnie." Edith whispers, a smile on her face.

"You have Edith." He states gently, kissing her forehead. "I know we haven't been together long..."

"I know." She replies, gently cutting him off, still talking quietly. "I feel the same. You know that right?" He nods, leaning down to kiss her.

"Better get some practice in for all those babies you want!" He teases, running his fingers down her sides.

"Bonnie!" Edith exclaims, letting out a laugh.

"Hey! You can't say you weren't thinking it too." He jokes, winking at her.

"Well..." she draws out, smiling cheekily at him as he pulls her gently into his lap.

"See?" He mumbles against her lips making Edith giggle, wrapping her arms around his neck. "What did I say?"

"Shut up and kiss me Mr Gold." She demands with a smirk, pulling herself closer to him as their lips reconnect.


	12. Chapter12

**Chapter 12**

"Mmm," Edith sighs, still half asleep but smiling as Bonnie presses tiny kisses to her lips. "Good morning Mr Gold." Bonnie chuckles as she snuggles closer to him, quickly responding with light kisses of her own.

"Good morning Miss Shelby."

"I could get used to this." Edith whispers between kisses, snaking her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss.

"Edie." Bonnie says reluctantly, pulling back from the kiss, letting out another laugh as Edith groans, shaking her head as she continues to press kisses to his lips. "Edith. I was just trying to wake you up. We need to get going love." The two teens had spent the last two days lounging around either the caravan or the beach, talking, kissing and enjoying being properly alone for the first time since meeting. Both had loved being in the company of the other, and the independence they had, and were incredibly reluctant to leave and go back to the reality that was Small Heath and the Peaky Blinders. "Edie..." he draws out with a laugh, gently pushing her head away from his. "Don't make me tickle you!" Edith groans again, a small smile playing on her lips as she tightens her hold on him pulling herself closer to him again.

"I don't want to go!" She moans, burrowing her head into Bonnie's neck.

"I know, love." He responds, wrapping her in a tight hug and pressing kisses to her head.

"Can't we just stay here?" She asks, looking up at him with a pout. Bonnie grins at this, leaning down to kiss her on the lips; Edith, seeing a chance to distract him, deepens the kiss again, both of them moaning into it as she wraps a leg around his hip.

"Edith..." he growls, reluctantly pulling back from the kiss.

"Bon..." she replies in the same tone, a teasing grin on her face. "Please..."

"Five more minutes." He counters, giving her a pointed look as she grins, pulling his head back down to hers.

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"We can just stay, right?" Edith jokes, once the two teens had finally made it out of bed nearly an hour later, legs swinging off the edge of the bed as she watches Bonnie pack up the last things in the caravan.

"No!" He laughs in response, leaning over her to quickly press a kiss to her lips. "Come on. Out you go. We need to get back before it rains."

"We could just stay right here. Wait for the rain to pass?" She suggests, standing to wrap her arms around Bonnie's waist.

"Edie. I don't want to go either love. But we have to, ok?" He insists, pressing a lingering kiss to her forehead.

"But why?" She whines, dropping her head to his chest. "We can stay! My brothers will get over it eventually!" Bonnie laughs at this, walking towards the door to the caravan, Edith still wrapped in his arms, protesting all the way.

"Edith, we've got things to do back in Small Heath..."

"Nothing important!" She continues to protest.

"Hey, I need my girl by the boxing ring tomorrow. If we stay here, that won't happen." Bonnie states. "I think I was promised something for after the fight...if I remember correctly?"

"Fiiine!" Edith whines, jumping up on to the seat at the front of the caravan, still pouting. Bonnie laughs as he pulls himself up on to the seat beside her, covering her pout with a kiss.

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A few hours later, Bonnie and Edith enter Small Heath again. After dropping the horse and caravan off with Aberama, Bonnie walks Edith home, hand in hand all the way.

"I enjoyed being away with you this weekend," Edith comments, swinging their joined hands between their bodies as they slowly head towards Watery Lane. "Thank you for taking me away."

"Of course." He quickly replies. "Where shall we go next weekend?"

"It's my birthday next weekend!" She exclaims, her walk turning to an excited skip as Bonnie laughs.

"Ah, yes! How could I forget?" He teases, continuing to chuckle as she dances around beside him, her hand still firmly tucked in his.

"Where are we gonna go?" She asks, wrapping her arm through his to pull herself closer to him.

"Hmmm, how about another surprise?" He replies, wiggling his eyebrows at her. Little did Edith know, that Ada had organised a surprise of her own, with the help of the rest of the family, for the weekend of Edith's 18th birthday.

"Bonnie..." she whines jokingly, tugging on his arm.

"I thought you liked surprises?" He teases in response.

"I do! But it's my birthday!"

"Even better!" He continues, refusing to meet her eyes as she jumps around beside him, still overexcited.

"Ugh!" She groans, dramatically falling against him. "Fine!" Bonnie laughs again, tucking her under his arm as her jumps return to a slow walk. "Stay with me tonight?" She asks as they turn into Watery Lane. Bonnie gives her a soft smile, leaning down to give her a gentle peck.

"Of course." He replies, taking her hand in his again. "Come on, let's get you home."

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"Ew!" Edith groans, covering her eyes as her and Bonnie walk into the kitchen, finding Finn kissing a girl, pressed up against the counter. "Really Finn?"

"Fuck! Edith!" He exclaims, hiding the girl behind him as he turns to face his sister who was mock gagging in Bonnie's direction. "You're back early!"

"It's due to rain later, we wanted to get back before it did." Bonnie explains, gently putting his hands on Edith's hips to lead her out of the room. "How about we leave your brother to it, eh?"

"Yuck!" Edith says, shivering as she turns away.

"That was way too close Finn." Millie whispers as Finn turns back to her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "We need to tell her."

"No! She'll lose her mind!" Finn exclaims, eyes widening at Millie's suggestion.

"What? No she won't! She'll be happy!" She protests, winding her arms around his neck.

"That we've been hiding our relationship from her?" He asks, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Yeah well...ok. Maybe not about that..." Millie draws out, biting her lip.

"Sorry Finn, just grabbing Edith's bag..." Bonnie calls as he walks back into the kitchen, eyes glued to the floor as he reaches for Edith's bag she had dropped in the doorway. "Shit." He breathes out as he looks up and sees Millie in Finn's arms, having recognised her from the first day he had met Edith.

"Bonnie, please." Finn begs, closing his eyes with a groan.

"You need to tell her Finn." Bonnie replies quietly, glancing between the two, unaware that Edith was walking up behind him.

"Are you two done yet?" She calls, eyes closed, hands outstretched in front of her as she fumbles down the hallway towards the kitchen. "I really need a glass of water!" She opens her eyes and lets out a yelp as she bumps into the doorframe, Bonnie immediately holding out his hands to steady her. "What. The. Fuck?" She whispers, gripping Bonnie's arms for support as she takes in the scene before her. "Millie?"


	13. Chapter13

**Chapter 13**

"Edith, it's not what it looks like." Finn starts, hands outstretched as he moves towards his sister.

"It looks like you've been kissing my best friend!" Edith exclaims incredulously.

"Well, yeah, that's kinda what's been happening." Millie offers with a shrug and a small smile. "You don't mind, right?"

"Millie." Finn groans, shooting her an exasperated look.

"What?" Millie asks, shrugging again. "She knows now. There's no hiding it."

"Woah, wait a minute! Let's back up a bit!" Edith stammers, rubbing her forehead. "How long has this been going on?"

"A few weeks?" Millie offers quietly, moving to stand beside Finn. "Nearly a month?" She turns to Finn for support, who raises his eyebrows at her, silently asking her what they should do next.

"A month?" Edith exclaims, looking over at Bonnie who shrugs in response. "And you didn't think to tell me?"

"Well..." Millie starts, only to be cut off by Edith.

"Finn! You are literally in the room next to mine! You could have told me!"

"Oh give over Edith." Finn sighs, wrapping an arm around Millie's waist to pull her closer to him. "You know now, ok? Calm the fuck down."

"Fucking hell," Edith sighs, turning away from her brother and best friend, Bonnie settling his hands gently on her waist.

"How about we all sit down for a minute, hey?" He suggests, Edith nods at this, watching over Bonnie's shoulder as Finn ducks his head to whisper in Millie's ear before gently leading her to sit at the table.

"I'll make us tea." Finn offers, Bonnie taking Edith's hand and leading her to the table. He takes a seat first, pushing out a chair beside him for her to sit on, Edith deciding against this, gently lowering herself on to Bonnie's lap. He smiles at this, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her back into his chest.

"Just listen, hmm?" He whispers in her ear, Edith relaxing against him as he rubs circles over her knee.

"They could have told me." She whispers back, linking her hand with his that rests around her waist, Bonnie simply humming in response.

"Edie, please don't be angry." Millie says softly, meeting her friend's eyes across the table. Bonnie squeezes Edith's knee, her eyes darting up to meet her older brother's as he comes to stand behind Millie, resting his hands on her shoulders.

"I'm not angry..." Edith reluctantly sighs, looking back at Millie. "But it would have been nice to have been told!"

"We wanted to!" Millie protests, leaning forwards in her chair. "But then everything just kind of got away with us. I know that's not a good excuse but please Edie, we wanted you to know sooner than this."

"You really like him?" She asks quietly, not meeting Finn's eyes as she draws circles with her fingertips on the surface of the table.

"I do, Edie." Millie replies, leaning across the table to take Edith's hand in hers. Finn clears his throat from behind her, Edith's head rising to look at him.

"We want you to be happy with this too Edith," he starts, sitting down beside Millie. "I know this wasn't expected, but it's happened, there's no going back now."

"I don't expect you to," Edith replies. "You supported me when Bonnie and I got together, it's only fair that I do too."

"You don't mind?" Millie asks, trying to hide her smile and Edith shakes her head. "Nothing will change, you know that, right? You've still got your big brother and your best friend."

"I know..." she says quietly, biting her lip. "You better fucking look after her!" She warns Finn, pointing her finger at him. "Or you'll have me to deal with!"

"Edith, Christ!" Finn laughs, sinking down into the chair next to Millie. The four of them sit in silence for a while, Finn only rising when the kettle boils over, to make them all tea.

"Did you have a nice weekend?" Millie asks, watching as Edith's eyes follow her brother around the kitchen.

"It was lovely." She replies, turning her head to smile at Bonnie. "You should come with us some time!"

"Ah, you missed me too much, eh?" Finn teases as he places two tea cups down in front of Bonnie and Edith, tugging Edith into a light headlock as he passes her.

"Hey!" She yelps, wrestling against her brother's grasp. Finn presses a kiss to the top of her head as he releases her, Edith falling back into Bonnie's chest as he and Millie laugh at the siblings. "Didn't bloody miss you at all." She grumbles jokingly, sticking her tongue out at him. "It's Millie I missed."

"Shame, I was going to make your favourite dinner tonight...might just make it for Millie now." Finn teases, settling into a chair beside Millie, flinging an arm over the back of her chair.

"How rude!" Edith exclaims dramatically, falling back against Bonnie's chest.

"I'll make you dinner Edie!" Millie says, joining in with the joke, blowing Edith a kiss across the table.

"Hey! Who's side are you on?" Finn exclaims, sitting up to look at his girlfriend.

"Edith's!" She replies, the three other teens laughing at the shocked look on Finn's face.

"How could you?" He mocks, laying his hand on his chest, acting hurt.

————————

"Hey," Finn calls from the doorway of Edith's room later that evening. She looks up from her book, throwing him a smile as she waves him in to the room.

"Hi, are you ok?" Edith asks as he flops down on the end of her bed, laid back against the covers.

"Yep!" He replies, popping the 'p'. "Are you really ok?" He asks, turning to lay on his side.

"About you and Millie?" She clarifies, shutting her book and placing it in her lap, holding her page with her finger. Finn nods in reply, head propped up by his hand. "Of course. It was just a shock Finn."

"I just wanted to check. Millie was really worried ya know, she didn't want you to be upset, but..."

"But you can't help who you fall for." Edith finishes for him, leaning forward to grasp her brother's hand in hers as he nods in agreement. "Really Finn, it's fine."

"Good. Good, I'm glad." Finn replies, letting out a sigh of relief. "I'll see you in the morning." He says, pressing a kiss to Edith's forehead as he spots Bonnie hovering in the doorway.

"What was that about?" Bonnie asks as he slides under the covers beside Edith, who pulls him down and in to her arms.

"He wanted to check I was ok with him and Millie." She replies, wrapping her arms around his waist as he presses a kiss to the top of her head.

"And are you?" Bonnie asks gently, reaching over Edith to switch off the lamp.

"I am." She says softly, snuggling under the covers as Bonnie presses another kiss to her head.

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"I want to go and see Tommy, will you take me?" Edith asks Michael, pausing in the doorway of his office the following morning. Edith had missed having contact with her older brother over the weekend; he hadn't been present much the week before with Charlie being ill at home, and hadn't returned to Small Heath on Monday morning, having conducted meetings from his house instead of his office. She hoped he could fit her in to his busy schedule, possibly for a ride out into the fields if he could find the time. Edith was bored lounging around the house with Bonnie training for his first big fight at the gym, Finn off with Millie for the day, and the rest of her family working (including Isiah who she would occasionally hang around with).

"Can't Bonnie take you?" He asks in reply, only briefly glancing up from his paperwork.

"He's training in the gym." She says. "Please Michael?"

"Where's Finn?" He asks this time, around his cigarette.

"Busy, with Millie." She grounds out.

"Millie? Fuck. Didn't see that coming." Michael replies, raising his eyebrows.

"Me neither." She states, leaning against the doorframe.

"How do you feel about that?" Edith rolls her eyes, pushing herself off the doorframe.

"Are you going to take me, or not?" She snaps, then sighs, immediately feeling guilty. "Sorry. I didn't mean to say it like that."

"Come on then." Michael replies, standing up and grabbing his coat. "I'll drop you off, but he'll have to bring you back. Ok? I've got stuff to do." Edith nods, throwing him a grateful smile as they leave the office.

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"I don't want to lose them." Edith says quietly, the pair having been sat in silence for the beginning of the journey.

"What?" Michael asks, glancing over at Edith who was staring out of the window.

"Finn and Millie." She replies, still in a quiet tone.

"What do you mean?" He asks gently, sensing the unease his youngest cousin was feeling.

"They both mean so much to me," she starts, frowning. "I don't want things to end badly and Millie not feel like she can be around me anymore."

"Edith you can't think like that." Michael protests, brows furrowing.

"I know. But then, that got me thinking, what if they get even closer, and then they don't have time to spend with me anymore? What if they get too wrapped up in each other?" Edith asks

"Don't you think they might feel that way about you and Bonnie?" Michael asks, treading gently.

"I didn't think about that." She says quietly, frowning.

"Exactly."

"Do you think it's been like that?" Edith asks, Michael immediately shaking his head.

"No." He assures her, noticing the frown still in place on her face.

"Are you sure?" She checks, looking over at him.

"Edith, don't worry about that right now, ok?"

"Ok." She repeats after a moments silence, looking out of the window.

"Nothing's going to happen. Look at the positive, Millie'll be around more now." Michael offers with a shrug.

"Yeah, sucking Finn's face off." Edith replies

"That's disgusting Edie." He grounds out, pulling a face.

"That's what I walked in on the other day." She defends, copying his facial expression as she turns back to him.

"Seriously?" Michael asks, brow still furrowed.

"Yup. That's how I found out."

"Ugh."

"I know right?" Edith exclaims, shaking the image from her head. "Yuck!"

"Have you told them that's how you feel?" He asks glancing between the road and his cousin.

"What, yuck?" Edith asks with a laugh.

"No!" Michael laughs. "That you're worried you'll lose them."

"No!" She exclaims, throwing him a confused look.

"You should." He states, returning her look with a pointed glare of his own.

"Hmm."

"I'm just saying...things change. The dynamic of your group is going to change now that you're all in relationships, it's natural." Michael explains gently.

"Look at you giving advice! The one person in the family who's never been in a solid relationship, giving relationship advice!" Edith teases, softly poking him in the side as they pull in to Tommy's driveway.

"Hey! Meanie!" He shouts, pushing her hand away. "Go on, out you get." He jokes, leaning over her to open the door, teasingly pushing her out.

"Michael!" She shouts in surprise, struggling against his hands, both of them laughing.

"Oi! Stop messing around and get inside," Tommy shouts from the doorway, having been alerted to his sister and cousin's brawl going on in the driveway by one of his maids. Edith calls an apology over her shoulder, the pair stopping their brawling long enough for Edith to press a kiss to Michael's cheek, offering him a quiet thank you before slamming the door shut and running up the driveway, straight into Tommy's arms.


	14. Chapter14

**Chapter 14 **

The morning of Edith's 18th birthday, she woke early, Bonnie at her side, in her room at Tommy's house. "Good morning birthday girl." Bonnie whispers, pressing light kisses to Edith's lips. "Ready for breakfast?" He asks, knowing Ada had planned for the whole family to surprise Edith at breakfast.

"Mhmm!" She nods in reply, placing one last lingering kiss on Bonnie's lips before pushing back the covers and tugging on her dressing gown.

"Do you not want your presents first?" He teases, still laying in bed, Edith turning quickly on her heels to look over at him.

"You got me a present?" She asks, a smile spreading across her face.

"Of course I did!" He replies, patting the bed beside him, Edith quickly sinking back down to his side. She sits cross legged, watching as he reaches into the bedside table to get her presents, passing two wrapped gifts to her. Edith turns so she is sat, wrapped in Bonnie's arms, both of them resting against the headboard.

"Which one first?" She asks, Bonnie pointing to the smaller package first. Edith carefully tearing open the paper to reveal a beautiful, floral embroidered journal. "Bonnie." She gasps, running her fingers over the intricate patterns. "It's beautiful."

"Figured you'd like a new journal to write in, I know how much you treasure your old one. Open the cover." Edith thumbs open the book, finding a note from Bonnie carefully written on the first page.

"My mother wrote in my old journal, did you know that?" Edith asks, tilting her head back to look up at Bonnie. "It made it even more special."

"I did know that," Bonnie replies gently, pressing a kiss to her temple. "Ada told me, when I told her I was going to buy you a new one."

"Thank you Bonnie." She replies, twisting in his arms to press her lips to his. "I love it." Bonnie simply smiles in response, pressing another kiss to her lips as he hands her the other present. Edith gently places the journal on the side table, taking the next present into her hands.

"I asked Ada and Finn what books you might like," he explains as she pulls out the novels he had bought her. "Finn was no help, but Millie helped me pick those ones out, so I hope they're ok."

"Ada and Millie helped you?" Edith asks softly, smiling at how much he cared about getting her the right books. "I've not got these ones, thank you." She turns in his arms, tugging him in to a tight hug which he returns.

"Happy birthday love." He says softly into her ear.

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"Who's here?" Edith asks as they make their way down the stairs, hearing voices coming from the ground floor of Tommy's house. "I thought it was just us and Finn staying over?" Bonnie remains silent, Edith's hand tucked in his as they reach the bottom of the stairs. He gently steers her towards the dining room where her family were waiting for her.

"Surprise!" They all shout, making Edith jump as she pushes open the door to the dining room. "Happy birthday Edith!" Edith laughs, glancing back at Bonnie who gently pushes her forwards into the open arms of Polly who had pushed her way to the front of the group.

"Aunt Pol!" Edith exclaims, wrapping her aunt in a tight hug which is quickly reciprocated.

"Happy birthday sweetheart." Her aunt replies, pressing a kiss to her forehead as Edith moves around the room to hug the rest of her family.

"Who did all of this?" She asks as she hugs Finn who squeezes her tightly, lifting her off the ground causing her to laugh.

"This was all Ada, Bonnie and I helped a little." He admits, placing her back on the ground and pulling out a chair for her to sit.

"This is amazing," she breathes as Bonnie takes a seat beside her, Edith leaning across the table to take in all the trays of food in front of her. Ada comes up behind her sister, resting her hands on her shoulders to press a kiss to her cheek.

"Are you happy?" She asks, pouring Edith a glass of champagne. "Tommy found this stuff, hope it's ok. All I said, was that we needed champagne for your special birthday breakfast!" She jokes, holding up the bottle before passing it off to Bonnie.

"I'm sure it's lovely!" Edith replies with a laugh, turning in her chair to give her sister another hug. "Thank you for doing this Ada."

"Of course." Ada says, giving Edith a squeeze before releasing her again. "Now eat up, Frances and the girls have been busy this morning!" Edith laughs again, turning back around to tuck in to the trays of food.

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"You look gorgeous." Bonnie calls, hands tucked into his pockets as he leans against the doorway of the room Edith had declared her own in Tommy's house. She was dressed in a lilac floor length gown, covered in delicate beads and flower sequins (a dress Polly had bought her for her birthday), her hair falling naturally in curls around her shoulders.

"Thank you." She says with a blush, watching him walk up behind her in the mirror and lightly rests his hands on her hips as he brushes a feather light kiss to the exposed skin where her neck meets her shoulder. "You brush up quite well yourself Mr Gold. You're looking very handsome in your suit." Edith turns to face him, tweaking the edge of his bow tie between her fingers. "Save a dance for me tonight eh?" She says softly, leaning up to brush her lips over his in a ghost of a kiss. Ada, with the help of Lizzie and Esme had organised a party for Edith at Tommy's house, inviting all of her school friends and family members, Edith not knowing about the party until that afternoon when Ada had whisked her off upstairs to get ready. She had spent the day spending time with her family at Tommy's house, playing outside in the sun with her nephews and nieces, Millie arriving before lunch to wish her best friend a happy birthday and help her get ready for the party.

"Only if you find a hiding spot for a secret kiss, birthday girl." Comes his response, closing the gap between them with a breathtaking kiss

"I'll see what I can do," she murmurs as they pull apart, resting her hand on his cheek, pecking light kisses on his lips. "or, we could just stay here..."

"Miss Shelby!" Bonnie exclaims with a laugh, digging his fingers into her sides making her squeal.

"I'm joking!" Edith says, pulling away from Bonnie to pick up the necklace Arthur had bought her, holding it out to him, silently asking him to put it on her. She holds her hair out of the way, watching Bonnie in the mirror as he concentrates on doing up the clasp, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck before taking her hair from her hands and letting it fall against her back.

"I'll meet you downstairs." He says softly in her ear, leaning round to press a kiss to her cheek as he does.

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"Oh my goodness look at you!" Edith squeals swinging her niece into her arms at the bottom of the stairs. "So beautiful!" She gives Esme a hug, Katie still in her arms.

"She's not going to stay long." Esme counters, brushing one of Katie's curls back from her face "But her daddy's promised her a dance."

"Ah I see! Think your daddy will save a dance for me too?" Edith asks with a grin. "I hear he's a very good dancer."

"I think that can be arranged." John calls from behind her, kissing his sister and daughter on their cheeks before moving to wrap an arm around Esme's waist.

"How kind!"

"What about me, Auntie Edith?" Karl asks, wrapping his arms around her legs in a hug, Edith dropping an arm to her side to hold him close to her.

"You want to dance with Uncle John?" She teases, digging her fingers into his ribs.

"No!" He cries, squirming away from her. "I wanna dance with you!"

"Oh!" Edith mock gasps, grinning at Ada who had joined the group in the hallway along with the rest of the family (Bonnie and Millie included). "Of course I'll dance with you Karl!" Karl grins up at his mum this time, Ada responding with an equally as big grin of her own.

"How lucky are you?" She exclaims throwing a teasing smile to her sister who nods with mock seriousness.

"Frances will be along in an hour or so to bring Charlie and the rest of the children up to bed." Tommy explains as he, Lizzie and Charlie join the group stood in the hallway.

"That includes you Edith." John teases his sister, earning him a glare and a punch to the shoulder, hard enough to make him wince.

"Where's Arthur?" She asks, gently lowering her niece to the floor, ignoring her brother fussing beside her, Ada holding back laughter at the pair of them.

"We're here!" Arthur calls, him and Linda heading down the hallway to join the rest of the family. "The party can start now!" Edith rolls her eyes at this, slipping her hand into Bonnie's to tug him in the direction of the dining room which had been emptied for the occasion.

"Right all of you. On your best behaviour tonight. Got it?" Tommy calls as the family follow Edith's lead.

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"Have you had a nice evening?" Bonnie asks softly as he winds his arms around Edith's waist. The party had pretty much ended by this point, all of Edith's school friends having gone home (bar Millie who had disappeared upstairs with Finn an hour ago), the only people left being Edith's brothers and cousin who were drinking the night away in the living room. Edith had left them alone a few minutes before, finding some peace outside on the terrace overlooking Tommy's garden, Bonnie following her shortly after.

"I have." She replies, resting back against Bonnie's chest, allowing him to hold her up. "It was so nice to have everyone here, and to see the girls again." Bonnie smiles into her neck, pressing light kisses there as she quietly talks. "Did you have fun?"

"Mhmm," he hums in response, laying his forehead on her shoulder, pressing a light kiss there. "I've got one more surprise for you."

"Another one?" Edith exclaims with a laugh, turning in Bonnie's arms to look him in the eye, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Uh huh," he replies, leaning down to kiss her on the lips. "How would you feel about going away for the weekend?" He asks, lips lightly resting over hers. Edith pulls back with a gasp, her eyes glistening with excitement.

"Are you serious?"

"I am." He assures her, pulling her back in for another kiss. "Mmm, you taste like champagne." He teases, Edith lightly slapping his chest at his teasing.

"Bonnie!" She exclaims, tugging on the lapels of his suit. "Are we really going away?"

"Yes." He says with a laugh. "But not in a caravan." Edith's smile drops, a frown forming as she looks up at Bonnie.

"Huh?"

"We're taking a car." Bonnie states, his hands running down her arms to intertwine their fingers together.

"A car?" She repeats, Bonnie nodding in response, beginning to walk backwards towards the house, hands still linked together. "To where?"

"To London." He replies, Edith's eyes lighting up again at the thought of spending the weekend in the city with Bonnie.

"I've never been to London." She breathes, Bonnie stopping in his tracks to kiss her again.

"I know," he says gently, pressing light kisses to her lips. "That's why we're going. A special birthday treat." Edith squeals, flinging her arms around Bonnie's neck as he wraps his arms around her waist, swinging her into his arms.

"What are we waiting for?" She exclaims as he sets her back on the ground, taking his hands in hers again. "Let's go!"


	15. Chapter15

**Chapter 15**

"Bonnie, how much did this cost?" Edith whispers as Bonnie unlocks the door to their hotel room. The young girl had been speechless all the way from the lobby to their room, taking in the elaborate decor around them.

"Don't worry about that, ok?" He replies, turning to press a kiss to her forehead. He tugs her gently in front of him so that she walked into the room first, reaching over her shoulder to push the door open for her.

"Bonnie!" She gasps as she steps into the room. "This is beautiful!" Bonnie smiles, watching as she goes around switching on lights to inspect the room. "Bon! Look at the bath! It's huge! And look at the mirror! Blimey! Even Ada's house isn't as nice as this, and she likes fancy things!" She exclaims, Bonnie letting out a laugh as he drops their bags to the foot of the bed, eyes glued to his girlfriend as she continues to explore the room, running her fingers over all the surfaces. "Bonnie?" Edith whispers, as she spots a small velvet box sat on the desk. "Bon? What's this?" She gently picks the box up, holding it out to Bonnie who gently takes it from her.

"A present." He replies cryptically, taking the box from her. "Sit down." He motions towards the bed, Edith slowly sinking down on to the end of it, Bonnie dropping to the floor to kneel between her legs. "Close your eyes."

"Bonnie..." she whispers again, clutching at the fabric of her skirt as she shuts her eyes. Bonnie takes a deep breath, trying to settle his pounding heart as he opens the box.

"Ok, open your eyes." He whispers, Edith slowly doing that, her eyes widening at the sight in front of her. Bonnie was knelt, holding out the velvet box, laid inside it was a simple gold ring, intricate swirls and tiny flowers engraved into the band, tiny pink gems placed between the petals of the flowers. Edith gulps, Bonnie's free hand coming up to untangle her fist from her dress, taking it gently into his, clearing his throat before continuing. "This is a promise ring." He states, placing her hand in her lap to free his hand, lifting the ring from the box and holding it out to her. "It's not an engagement ring. Yet. It's a ring to declare and to promise...my love to you." Edith's eyes well at Bonnie's statement, sliding off the bed and into his lap, Bonnie quickly placing the empty box on the floor to wrap his arm around her waist. "I love you Edith Shelby." He whispers, holding out the ring to her once again. Edith lets out a choked laugh, letting Bonnie lift her hand from around his neck and slide the ring gently on to her finger.

"I love you too Bonnie Gold." She replies in the same soft tone, pulling his head to hers in a deep kiss. Bonnie lets out a sigh of relief as Edith pulls back, resting her forehead against his; he pats her hips gently, indicating she should stand up, lifting her into his arms once they were both on their feet and carrying her over to the bed.

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The next morning, Bonnie wakes before Edith, laying silently beside her as she sleeps peacefully, curled up on her side of the bed. He snakes his hand softly under his shirt that she had slept in last night, raking his fingertips gently along her back, Edith sighing softly in her sleep as he does so.

"Good morning love," Bonnie whispers as her eyes flutter open minutes later, pulling herself closer and nudging her head into his neck.

"Good morning." Edith whispers back, voice laced with sleep.

"You look good in my shirt." He comments, still running her fingers along her spine.

"Oh yeah?" She yawns, smiling sleepily up at him. "Maybe I should wear your shirts more often."

"Maybe you should." Bonnie agrees, leaning his head down to kiss her deeply.

"Mmm, that was nice." She hums as he pulls away, his fingers still running up and down her spine. She nudges her head back into his neck, looping her arms around his waist in a tight hug. Edith releases one arm, lifting her hand to inspect the ring Bonnie had given her last night.

"Do you like it?" Bonnie asks, watching Edith turn her hand to look at the ring he had given her.

"I love it." She replies immediately, running a finger along the band. "Where did you get it?"

"A friend of Gwen's made it." Bonnie replies, smiling at Edith.

"Really?" She asks, eyes darting up to meet his.

Bonnie nods in response, "I told him what I wanted, and he made it for me. His family make all sorts of jewellery." He explains. "If you look closely, there's a B and an E hidden in there somewhere." Edith gasps, pulling her hand closer to her face to investigate the ring more closely.

"Bonnie! That's so special." She whispers, resting her hand on his cheek and pulling him in for another kiss. "I love it." She states, pressing hard kisses to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too." Bonnie replies, a smile etched on both of their faces as they look each other in the eye. "God it feels so good to finally say that." Edith laughs at this, winding her arms around her neck to pull her body flush against Bonnie's.

"What are we doing today?" Edith asks, brushing her fingers over Bonnie's cheek, his eyes drifting closed at her touch.

"Hmm, we could just stay here?" He teases, dragging her impossibly closer by her hips, Edith easily swinging her leg over his, cuddling in to him.

"I like the sound of that." She replies, pressing short, sweet kisses to his lips, Bonnie sleepily responding to each one.

"This is your birthday trip, what do you want to do?" Bonnie asks, trailing his fingers up and down her back again, Edith sighing at the soothing motion.

"Mmm," she hums, closing her eyes again, their noses resting lightly against the other's. "I wanna have a bath. That thing is huge!" Bonnie laughs as Edith's giggles reverberate on to his chest.

"I think we can manage that." He replies, pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose. "Want me to fill it now?"

"Five more minutes." Edith mumbles, tightening her grip on him, eyes still tightly shut. "What else are we going to do?"

"I was thinking I'd take you out for lunch. Or dinner. Depending on what time we make it out of here." Bonnie says, smiling at the sleepy grin that covers Edith's face.

"That sounds nice." She hums in response. "When do we have to go home?"

"We've got another night here. We can leave whenever we want tomorrow." He replies, Edith's grin growing at the thought of being alone with Bonnie, away from her brothers for longer.

"Thank you for doing this Bonnie." She says softly, eyes opening to meet his.

"Anything for you." He responds, pressing a lingering kiss to her lips. "God, you're beautiful." He mutters when he pulls back, cupping Edith's face in his hands as she blushes and giggles, ducking her head down.

"You're not too bad either." She teases, lifting her head to kiss him.

"Thanks." Bonnie jokes in response, eliciting another laugh from Edith. "I'm gonna sort the bath for you. Then we can find something for breakfast?"

"Ooh, you do know the way to my heart Bonnie Gold." Edith teases as Bonnie slides out of bed, heading into the bathroom.


	16. Chapter16

**Chapter 16**

**AN: just a quick note to say that the order of the story still doesn't match with series four, so Bonnie is getting his boxing license earlier in this story than in the show :) enjoy! **

In the weeks following Edith's birthday, Bonnie had begun to spend more time in the gym, working with Mr Maine in order to receive the boxing licence from Tommy that would allow him to fight. Whilst Bonnie was at the gym, Edith would fill her time with the horses at Tommy's house or Charlie's yard, and when she wasn't there, she would take herself to Polly's house to spend some time with her Aunt, who was still reluctant to spend too much time around Edith's middle brother, preferring to spend time in her own home with her youngest niece, Finn and Michael occasionally joining them.

"Congratulations Mr Welterweight," Edith says, winding her arms around Bonnie's neck. Edith, having overheard Tommy's conversation with Aberama and Arthur earlier that day, had slipped into the gym after her brothers had arrived, hanging back until Tommy issued the license.

"Edie, what are you doing here love?" Bonnie asks, his voice showing his happiness at having his girl there. "I'm all sweaty!" He protests with a laugh as Edith wraps him in a hug, quickly responding to her touch nonetheless.

"I don't care!" Edith laughs, reaching up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Bonnie's lips. "I'm proud of you Bonnie!" Bonnie laughs, lightly resting his hands on her hips, his forehead on hers.

"Let me go get showered and we can go and celebrate." He says, pressing another lingering kiss to her lips.

"Why bother?" She whispers in his ear. "You'll just get sweaty again with what I have planned." She winks at him as his jaw drops, looking around to see if anyone had heard, pleased to find his father and Edith's brothers had already moved off further into the gym.

"Miss Shelby!" He yelps, shocked, flicking at her with his towel as he backs away slowly, throwing her a wink of his own.

"Get your mind out of the gutter Mr Gold!" She hisses teasingly at his retreating figure, giggling as he rolls his eyes at her, turning and jogging off to the showers.

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Edith leans against the wall of the gym, waiting for Bonnie to finish up inside, absentmindedly twirling her rings around her fingers as she stares off into the distance, jumping slightly when Bonnie appears in front of her. He smiles down at her, resting his hands on the wall either side of her head, leaning down to capture her lips with his.

"Ready to go?" She asks, raising up on to her tip toes to kiss him again as he nods, dropping a hand to his side to intertwine their fingers.

"Do you want to go out tonight?" He asks as they head back through the streets of Small Heath.

"Out?" Edith repeats, looking up at Bonnie. "Like..."

"Like, out to dinner and then to the pictures? Or there's a dance going on downtown tonight?" He suggests, smiling down at Edith as she grins up at him.

"Wow, you're really pulling out all the stops at the moment Mr Gold!" She teases, bumping his shoulder with hers. "What's going on?"

"What? I can't treat my girl every now and then?" He replies in the same teasing tone, Edith giggling in response.

"Hmm, I guess so." She jokes in reply, winding her arm through his and pulling herself closer as the wind picks up.

"I just feel like we haven't been able to spend much time together recently." Bonnie confesses, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to keep her warm. "I feel bad for being so busy..."

"Bonnie!" Edith exclaims, stopping abruptly in the street. "Don't feel bad! You needed this license, I understand how important it is to you. Of course I missed you, but you don't have to worry about it!"

"I do though." He protests, only to be cut off by Edith.

"Don't!" Edith responds, standing in front of him to press a kiss to his lips. "It's just like if you were off to work every day, which technically it is. And I've been busy too between visiting Aunt Pol and looking after the horses, I've not been around much either, remember?"

"I know, but..."

"No. No 'buts'!" Edith laughs, wiggling her index finger in his face. She turns, intertwining their fingers again and pulling him to walk with her again. "You don't need to take me out and treat me just because we've both been busy."

"But what if I want to take you out and treat you?" He asks with a smile, wrapping his arm around her again to hold her close to him as they walk. "Just because."

"Then that would be lovely." Edith replies, winding her arm around his waist. "I love you Bonnie."

"I love you too." He repeats, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"But would you really want to go to a dance?" She clarifies, looking up at him.

"I would if that's what you wanted to do." He replies. "We could see if Finn and Millie wanted to meet us there? Go out to dinner by ourselves first?"

"I'd really like that." Edith admits, tilting her head up to smile at him again.

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"Bon? Will you button my dress up?" Edith calls to Bonnie who was still lounging on the bed, watching Edith as she moved around the room, getting ready for the evening. He rolls himself off the bed making Edith laugh, watching him through the mirror as he makes his way over to her, wrapping her in a tight hug from behind instead of doing up her dress.

"I like this colour on you," he comments, running his hands down her waist, covered in a scarlet red dress, to land on her hips.

"It's one of Ada's old dresses," Edith confesses, tilting her head back to rest on his shoulder, looking up at him. "She doesn't use them anymore, said I could have them instead."

"You look beautiful." He states, pressing a lingering kiss on her cheek.

"Are you sure you really want to go dancing tonight Bon?" She asks as he gently does up the buttons on the back of her dress.

"Hey," he says softly, turning her around and placing a finger under chin to tilt her head up to look at him. "I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't want to go with you." He replies, leaning down to kiss her on the lips. Edith smiles up at him, puckering her lips for another kiss.

"Do you really mean that?" She asks quietly, resting her arms around Bonnie's neck.

"I do." He assures her, his hands coming to rest on her hips. "I like seeing you happy, and you're always happy when you're dancing." Edith laughs at this, tucking her head into the space between his shoulder and neck. "Plus, there's a bar there, so when Finn and I get tired, and you and Millie want to keep dancing, we can sit back and enjoy watching you two have the time of your lives." Edith lets out another laugh, pressing a kiss to Bonnie's neck before standing to full height again.

"You'd better get ready then Mr Gold, or we're going to be late for our dinner reservations!" She jokes, teasingly pushing him away and moving to her dressing table to finish getting ready.

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"I honestly don't know where they get their energy from." Finn huffs as he sinks on to the bar stool beside Bonnie, the two of them watching as Edith and Millie swing each other, laughing, around the dance hall.

"God knows," Bonnie replies with a smile and a shake of his head, passing Finn a glass of whiskey.

"I'm going to ask Millie to marry me." Finn states around his whiskey glass, causing Bonnie to choke on his sip of his own drink.

"You're what?" He chokes out, Finn patting him on the back. "You're going to ask Millie to marry you?" He repeats, Finn nodding slowly in reply. "You've hardly been together very long..."

"I know."

"So are you going to ask her soon? Have you told Edith?" Bonnie asks, placing his glass down on the bar.

"Nah, not soon." Finn protests, turning to Bonnie. "Edith doesn't know yet. But I know that I will. One day. She's the one. I'm telling you."

"Alright." Bonnie says, nodding along with Finn. "Good for you."

"You can't tell me you don't feel the same for Edith?" Finn says, frowning at Bonnie who quickly shakes his head.

"No. Of course I do. She's the one." He replies, repeating Finn's words back to him.

"Bonnie!" Edith shouts from the dance floor, waving for him to join her. Bonnie shakes his head at her, a smile stretching across his face at her pout, Edith tilting her head to the side in a pleading look. Realising she was getting nowhere, she jokingly huffs, winding through the crowd and straight into Bonnie's arms, wrapping hers around his neck as she continues to pout.

"Please Bonnie!" She whines, batting her eyelashes at him. "One more dance. Please?" Bonnie sighs, dropping his head to her shoulder, tugging her to stand between his legs.

"Anything for you love." He replies, kissing her as she wiggles excitedly in his arms, taking his hand to lead him back on to the dance floor, Bonnie through a mock despairing look at Finn who simply laughs in response.


	17. Chapter17

**Chapter 17**

"Hello there." Bonnie greets his girlfriend as she opens the front door, face flushed red.

"Hi!" Edith says breathlessly, leaning on the doorway for support, beaming up at him.

"You ok?" He asks, furrowing his brow in confusion.

"Just great!" She replies, rising up on to her tiptoes, her lips puckered, silently asking for a kiss, which Bonnie ducks his head down to give.

"Ok..." Bonnie draws out with a laugh as Edith settles back to normal height. "I've just finished up at the gym, I was wondering if you'd want to..."

"Auntie Edith!" Charlie's little body barrels into Edith's legs making her jerk forward, Bonnie holding his hands out to catch her before she falls. Katie appears from behind them, grabbing Edith's hand and dragging her back into the house.

"Sorry!" Edith calls over her shoulder, both her and Bonnie laughing at the antics of her niece and nephew. "Come in!" Bonnie cautiously steps into the house, following the direction Edith had been dragged off in.

"What the..." he murmurs, breaking with a chuckle at the state of Edith's living room. The pillows had been pulled off the sofas and were propped up around the room, blankets covering every inch of visible space.

"Welcome to Shelby Manor!" Edith jokes, flinging her arms open wide as Bonnie looks around, wide eyed. "Oof!" She yelps, dropping to the ground as more of her nephews tackle her on to the cushions.

"You ok?" Bonnie asks, trying to hold in his chuckle as he looks down at Edith, laying on the floor with her nephews crawling over her.

"Yep!" She grunts as Karl's elbow connects with her chin. "Ok! Off!" She shouts, pushing Karl off of her stomach, him flopping on to the cushion beside her with a shriek. Bonnie leans down, holding out his hand which Edith gratefully takes. "Well, this started as Shelby Manor, now its a war zone!" She jokes, moving to stand with her back to Bonnie's chest watching as her nieces and nephews wrestle around the living room. "I think they'll be ok with all these pillows for a minute, want a cup of tea?" Bonnie nods at this, the two teens giving one last glance at the children before heading into the kitchen.

"How come they're all with you today?" Bonnie asks leaning against the counter, Edith coming to stand beside him, her eyes glued to the doorway, watching her niece's and nephews play in the living room.

"The boys are out on Blinder business. Took Ada with them." Edith replies, frowning.

"You don't seem too happy about that," Bonnie comments, taking Edith's hand in his, intertwining their fingers. "I thought you didn't want to be part of the company."

"I don't." Edith protests. "Doesn't mean I don't want to know what's going on. Or see my brothers! It's been weeks since I last saw John and Arthur, Michael pops around occasionally if I'm going to see Aunt Pol, I only see Finn when he's not out with Isiah or leaves his room long enough to stop fucking Millie and get some food, and Tommy's only ever around when he needs something. Like today, with the kids. I hate it." Edith groans, taking her head in her hands, rubbing at her eyes. "God I'm such a moaner. Don't listen to me. I'm just tired. Sorry Bon, you didn't come here for me to rant at you and be in a shit mood."

"We all have those days Edith." He reassures her, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her in for a hug, Edith's head coming to rest on his chest. "Have you told your brothers that's how you feel?"

"They don't listen. I tried to ring Arthur yesterday, Linda answered and told me he was out. Esme and John never even pick up the phone, they're probably too busy fucking too. Tommy's in and gone within a minute and won't listen to anything other than what he needs, and I don't see Finn enough to be able to have a conversation with him." Edith protests, wrapping her arms around Bonnie.

"How about you call a family meeting?" Bonnie suggests, Edith pulling back from the hug to look up at him. "Then everyone's together in one place. Talk to them all at once."

"That's a good idea." Edith agrees, biting her lip. "Maybe I can get Ada to help me organise it. They all listen to her."

"Sounds like a plan." He replies, leaning down to kiss her. "Don't worry about it all for today, eh? Let's just enjoy the afternoon with the kids."

————————

"I think they're all out." Edith whispers later that evening, crawling over to Bonnie who was sprawled out on a sofa cushion still strewn across the living room floor, Teddy laid across his chest. Edith flops down beside them, laying her head on the small amount of space her nephew wasn't taking up between Bonnie's shoulder and chest. "Thank you for being such a good sport, they're quite the rowdy bunch!"

"Anytime." Bonnie quietly replies, turning his head to press a kiss to the top of Edith's head.

"You look good holding a baby." She comments, a twinkle in her eye as she runs her hand over Teddy's back, her eyes locked on Bonnie's as he chuckles. "You'll look even better when it's our baby your holding." She teases, Bonnie smiling down at her in reply.

"You're going to be an amazing mum one day Edie." He states, his hand coming to rest on her cheek.

"I can't wait to start a family with you." Edith replies, brushing her fingers through the fine baby hairs on the back of Teddy's neck.


	18. Chapter18

**Chapter 18**

The sound of the front door slamming open against the wall rouses Edith from her sleep, being vaguely aware it's the middle of the night, she registers that it's probably one of her brothers coming home from the pub drunk. She had decided not to join her brothers and boyfriend at the pub, just to watch them be stupid and get drunk, instead going to the pictures with Millie, walking her friend home after the show and then continuing on to Watery Lane, deciding to wait in bed for Bonnie to return. At the sound of glass shattering, Edith bolts upright, calling out for Finn, expecting it to be him. At the lack of reply from her brother, Edith creeps into the hallway, pausing at the top of the stairs to listen out for any further noises. Hearing voices she had never heard before, Edith walks backwards being careful to avoid the creaking floorboards, holding her breath, into her bedroom, quietly shutting and locking the door behind her.

"Oh god." She mutters under her breath, quickly tiptoeing across the room to the window which she slides open, taking a deep breath before swinging a leg over the windowsill. This had been a regular occurrence for Edith as a child, often sneaking out of the house at night to meet up with her school friends, spending the night hiding in the shadows of Watery Lane, or after having been sent to her room by an older brother, slipping off to Polly's unnoticed for a few hours. She sits on the windowsill for a moment more, glancing back inside her room before sliding down, holding her breath as she lands on the roof of the back porch, shimmying down the drain pipe to the ground, hissing as she feels something sharp catch on her thigh, blood immediately dripping down her leg. As she reaches the floor, Edith stays low crawling over to the back gate, intent on heading to the Garrison to find her brothers, if not to her Uncle Charlie's, pausing as she hears gruff voices on the other side of the garden wall. She lets out an internal groan, quickly moving back to the porch, crouching down beside the steps to the back door, deciding to stay there until Finn and Bonnie returned.

————————

"Edith?" Bonnie calls as he enters the house, heart pounding as he brushes aside broken glass with his foot. "Edith?" He repeats, making his way through the house, Finn on his heels, swearing quietly under his breath. "Fuck!" Bonnie shouts as his search of the house fails to lead him to Edith. His heart pounds in his chest, fearing the worst until he hears Finn shout for him. Bonnie pounds down the stairs, running into the kitchen where he finds Finn holding Edith up, practically dragging her in to the house through the back door. He quickly makes his way over to the siblings, taking his shaking girlfriend into his arms, Edith collapsing into him, knees buckling as they both sink to the floor.

"Edie? Love. Open your eyes for me. I'm here. I've got you." He gathers her further into his arms, hers immediately coming to circle his body as her silent tears turn to sobs. "Jesus Edith." Bonnie breathes, running his hands up and down her body as Finn rushes out of the door again to find their older brothers. "Fuck. Edie. You're bleeding love. Where are you hurt? Huh? Where?" He asks frantically, trying to find the source of the bleeding as Edith continues to sob, unable to form any words.

"I was so scared." She cries into his shoulder, rather than answering his question. "I just froze! I didn't know what to do!"

"Sshh," Bonnie hums, rocking her in his arms. "I've got you now. You're safe." He reassures her. "Edie. You need to tell me where you're hurt love. What happened?" Edith shakes her head, clutching on to Bonnie's shirt. "What hurts love?" He repeats, Edith barely points to her leg, Bonnie gently lifting her nightdress to see a deep gash on the side of her thigh, quickly shrugging off his jacket to press against the wound. "What happened?" He repeats this time, running his free hand up and down Edith's back.

"I don't know. Someone came into the house, I thought it was you and Finn. But it wasn't. So I climbed out the window and hid in the garden." She frantically explains, still holding on tightly to Bonnie.

"Fuck," Bonnie mutters, his arm around her waist tightening on her. "You're ok now. They're gone. You're safe."

————————

"Holy shit, what happened in here?" Edith breathes out as she and Bonnie walk hand in hand into the Shelby offices for a family meeting the next morning, taking in the damage to the main office.

"Sit down Edith. We all need to talk." Tommy commands, Edith scowls at this, but takes a seat beside Michael anyway, her cousin quickly sliding his hand into hers to give it a quick reassuring squeeze.

"You ok?" He quietly asks her, Edith nodding in reply, her grip on his hand tightening nonetheless. "Good." He mutters, leaning over to press a kiss to her temple. Bonnie drags a chair over, placing it beside Edith's, an arm coming to rest over the back of her chair, her hand coming to rest in his free hand in his lap.

"We've called this meeting to discuss everything that happened last night," Tommy starts, standing from his chair behind his desk. "We were hit by a family called the Crimleys, looking for revenge."

"Revenge for what?" Edith asks, leaning forward in her chair.

"That doesn't need to be discussed now." Tommy curtly replies, barely glancing down at his sister who raises her eyebrows with a scoff, sinking back into her chair as she shakes her head. "All that you need to know, is that it's being dealt with."

"And my broken front door?" Edith bitterly asks. "And my living room window? That's being dealt with too?"

"You know it will be Edith. Today. There's no need to be so grumpy." John replies, rolling his eyes at his younger sister.

"They came into my house, John!" Edith shouts, leaning forward once again. "They kicked down my door while I was in bed! They smashed anything they could get their hands on, and stole my most treasured possessions. Mum's jewellery! Her ornaments, distroyed. Anything that was worth anything, gone!" Finn visibly winces at this, knowing how much their mother's possessions meant to Edith, Bonnie knowing this too, rests his hand on her shoulder, rubbing soothing circles there as tears begin to flow down Edith's face.

"And while we were distracted there, they took our money!" Arthur bellows, rising from his chair. "We all lost things last night Edith!" Edith gasps at this, letting out a choked sob as she too rises from her chair.

"Oh so I'm a fucking distraction now, am I Arthur?" She cries, shaking herself free of Michael's hand on her arm, watching as everyone rises from their chairs, Finn slowly making his way across the room to his sister.

"Edith, you know that's not what he meant." He tries to sooth her, shooting a glare at their oldest brother.

"None of you fucking listen to me!" She shouts, picking up a glass from Tommy's desk, ignoring the protests from the men surrounding her. "None of you fucking care!" At Arthur's bitter laugh, Edith throws the glass across the room in his direction, Arthur ducking just in time to miss being hit, the glass instead shattering against the wall.

"Edith!" Ada shouts in shock, now joining the youngest boys in the family in trying to calm her sister. The youngest Shelby sibling was not known for holding her tongue, nor her temper at family meetings, but never had she resorted to causing a mess or starting violence between herself and her brothers. The sight of Edith this upset and willing to start a fight shocked the older Shelby's into silence, Bonnie holding his breath as he tried to take Edith's hand in his, anxiously waiting to see who would make the next move.

"That's enough drama now Edith. Sit down." Arthur bellows, breaking the silence of the room. Edith seeing red at this, shakes off the hands of her brother and cousin, flying across the room at Arthur. By the time Bonnie pushes through the men, Edith had taken a swing at Arthur, catching him on the cheek, her rings cutting at his skin before Bonnie could wind his arms around her, pulling her backwards and into his arms. Edith stills as soon as Bonnie's arms are around her, tilting her head as she watches her oldest brother let out a laugh and swipe at the blood running down his cheek. "Are you high?" She questions, narrowing her eyes at the glazed look in her brother's eyes. "Are you seriously fucking high right now?" She lets out a bitter laugh and a shake of her head. "He's high as a fucking kite." She states, Bonnie's arms relaxing around her body as she turns to face Tommy who was still stood behind his desk. "Did you know he was high? And you still let him say that shit."

"Edith. What Arthur does in his free time does not concern us." Tommy replies, hands in his pockets as he watches his sister's response.

"Seriously?" She spits out, shaking her head with a laugh. "You know what? Fuck you. Fuck all of you." Edith turns in Bonnie's arms, pushing past him as she storms out of the room. Bonnie raises his eyebrows at Finn who was still glaring at Arthur before following Edith out of the room.

———————

"What are you doing Edith?" Millie asks as she hovers in the doorway of Edith's room.

"I'm leaving." Edith states, throwing her clothes from the wardrobe on to the bed to pack into bags.

"Edith. Come on." Millie sighs, stepping into the room.

"I can't fucking be around them anymore Millie. I can't." Edith exclaims, throwing her hands in the air. "Someone's going to get killed and no one will care. Business will go on as usual. I can't be a part of this anymore." Millie sinks down on to the bed, taking Edith's hand in hers to pull her down beside her.

"Where will you go?" She asks gently as Edith rests her head on her friends shoulder.

"I don't know yet." She replies, sitting for a while longer before standing again, beginning to fold her clothes, packing them carefully into the bags on the bed.

"Edith, is this really the best idea?" Millie asks gently, laying a hand on Edith's arm. "You've joked about running away before...but Edith. This sounds real."

"It is real." Edith states.

"Edie. Come on. The boys need you. You're needed here." Millie protests.

"I can't be here anymore, Millie." Edith says tearfully, shaking her head to clear the tears away. "The boys will be fine. Small Heath will continue running without me around. I, will be fine. But I can't stay here."

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An hour later, Edith finds herself on her Aunt's doorstep, bags at her feet, giving her Aunt a weak smile as she opens the door. "Aunt Pol? I need your help."


	19. Chapter19

**Chapter 19 **

"Judging by all the bags, I'm guessing you're running away? Again?" Her aunt asks, as she potters around the kitchen, back to Edith who drops her head into her hands, groaning in response. This was not an uncommon occurrence for the family, the boys all having run away to Aunt Pol at some point in their childhood; yet Edith's stays had always been more frequent, and eventful, usually starting with a teary eyed Edith on Polly's doorstep, and ending with drama when her brothers would come home from work to find their youngest sister missing, promptly turning up at Polly's to drag her back home. The Shelby siblings always headed for their Aunt's, knowing she wouldn't push or question them, giving them food, a warm place to stay, and endless cuddles in Edith's case.

"Can I just stay here Aunt Pol, just for a few days? Until I decide what I want to do, what I need to do." Edith all but begs as Polly settles into the chair across from her, nodding.

"And young Bonnie?" Polly asks, pushing a tea cup across the table to Edith. "Where is he? Where does he fit into all this?"

"He's at the gym. Training." Edith replies, cupping the tea cup to warm her hands. "He can stay with his dad, while I'm figuring everything out."

"Does he know you're here?" Polly's questions, Edith nodding in response. "Then he can stay too. If that's what you want."

"Thank you Pol." Edith breathes out, resting her head on her arms on the table.

"And what about your brothers? Do they know you're here?" Edith shakes her head this time, Polly frowning at this. "Not even Finn?" Edith shakes her head again, Polly letting out a sigh. "It won't take them long to figure it out Edith Mary. You know that. What are you going to do when they come knocking, eh? I'm not dealing with them."

"You don't have to Pol. I'll deal with them if they come around. I don't think they will though." Edith replies with a frown.

————————

Later that evening, Edith wakes for her nap on the sofa to shouting coming from the hallway, immediately recognising her older brother's voice.

"Bonnie. Move out of the way. I know Edith is here. She needs to come home. Now." John growls, hands on Bonnie's chest, clutching at his shirt. Bonnie places one hand on John's chest, giving him one shove to push him backwards.

"John. Edith's asleep. She's safe, she doesn't need to go anywhere. You need to leave. Just give her some time." Bonnie counters, remaining calm despite the red faced, angry Shelby in front of him.

"You don't get to tell me what to do, gypsy boy." John snaps, pointing his finger in Bonnie's chest, the younger boy simply raising his eyebrows in response.

"John..." Bonnie starts again, only to be cut off by Edith who steps into the hallway behind him.

"Just fuck off John." She says in a bored tone, crossing her arms as she leans against the doorframe of the living room. "Fuck. Off. Go back to your wife and children. Just leave me the fuck alone."

"Edith, come on. We're going." John states, attempting to push past Bonnie who lays a hand on John's chest once again, pushing back to stop him moving past. John looks down at Bonnie's hand in disbelief, shaking his head, letting out a sigh before speaking again. "Tommy wants you at home. Where we're all together. And you're safe."

"I'm safe here." Edith stubbornly replies, still not moving from her spot further down the hallway.

"Arthur's been hurt." John tries again, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Edith. Please."

"How?" Edith asks, heart pounding at the thought of one of her brother's being injured. At John's lack of response, Edith raises her eyebrows and tries again. "How did Arthur get hurt John? Was it the Crimleys?" John let's out a growl of frustration before replying. "John?"

"No." He grounds out.

"Then how?" Edith questions.

"In a fight." John replies, Edith nodding slowly in reply, raising her eyebrows once more, this time at Bonnie who gives her a sympathetic look.

"So he let his temper take over? And got hurt in the process? Well boo fucking hoo. He's a big boy. I'm sure he'll be fine." She replies, turning to head back down into the living room. "If Tommy wants to see me, he can come and get me himself, John. He'll stop getting you to do all his dirty work for him."

"Huh. Like you can fucking talk, Edith." John calls back, Edith flipping him off as she pushes open the living room door, disappearing again, leaving Bonnie to see John out of the front door.

"Was that your brother I heard?" Polly asks, making Edith jump, not expecting to find her aunt sat in the armchair in the corner of the living room.

"Fuck, Pol, you scared the shit out of me." Edith breathes out, hand on her chest as she drops on to the sofa.

"You said you're brothers weren't coming around." Polly comments, Edith dropping her head on to the back of the sofa, closing her eyes.

"Tommy wants me home." She replies. "He sent John to do his dirty work. As always. But if he'd really wanted me home, he would have come himself. He knows I don't listen to John, that sending him here would not bring me home."

"I see."

"I'm not going home Pol. Not this time." Edith states with a shake of her head.

"Ok. If you say so." Polly replies, pushing herself up from the sofa. "I'll leave you two alone." Edith turns her head, giving Bonnie a smile as Polly heads out of the room, Bonnie dropping down beside Edith on the sofa. The pair sit in silence for a few minutes, both of them resting their head on the back of the sofa, staring up at the ceiling until Edith breaks the silence.

"I should go home. Shouldn't I?" She asks quietly, turning her head to look at Bonnie, head still resting on the sofa.

"I'm not going to tell you what you need to do, love." He replies, taking her hand in his to intertwine their fingers.

"But Arthur's been hurt. I'm a bad sister if I don't go and make sure he's ok, aren't I?" Bonnie frowns, shaking his head.

"Edith. Arthur is an adult. He makes his own decisions. He's got your brothers and Ada with him, I'm sure. You decide what it is you want to do." He says, giving her hand a squeeze. "Whether you decide to go home, or stay here, I'll support you. You know that, right?"

"I know." Edith replies tearfully, closing her eyes once again. "I'm staying here. I need some time away." She sits in silence again for a few minutes, Bonnie watching her as she nervously twirls the rings around her fingers, biting her lip.

"What are you thinking about?" He asks softly, gently brushing some hair off her forehead.

"What to do." She quietly replies, sighing at his gentle touch. "I think I want to go away. Like, away, away. Away from Birmingham."

"Where do you want to go?" Bonnie asks, still threading his fingers gently through her hair.

"Anywhere but here." Edith states, voice remaining quiet. "I need to get away." Bonnie simply nods, reading Edith's expression, knowing her well enough to know she hadn't finished yet, deciding to wait to hear what else she wanted to say. "I have money from Uncle Charlie. Remember he was away for a week, and I looked after the horses? He gave me some for doing that. And I've got money Tommy gives me every month. I've been saving that up."

"And I've got some from the company, for Blinder business." Bonnie adds. "We can use that too."

"Are you sure?" Edith asks, Bonnie immediately nodding in reply. "So we've got enough to get us through for a while."

"We do. Let's get away then. Travel south, see where we end up." He suggests, pressing a kiss to her temple. "How does that sound?"

"What about your boxing?" She asks, turning her head to look at Bonnie who shrugs.

"I have my license now. It will still be valid when we decide to come back, if we decide to come back." He adds hastily, Edith nodding along. "I'll find gypsies to fight wherever we stop. We can meet up with my sisters. They'll know of men looking for fights."

"Does that not scare you? Fighting random men?" She asks with a frown.

"It's what I did before I came to Small Heath, Edie." Bonnie explains gently.

"Still. It makes me nervous." She states, brushing the backs of her fingers across his cheek before intertwining their hands again. "But. I know that it's what you do. That you're good at it. So. I'll stand by you. Of course I will. Just like you are with me." Bonnie gives her a grateful smile, pulling her hand up to his lips to press a kiss there. "When can we leave?"

"Give me a couple of days, get things sorted with dad, try and get word to my sisters that we'll be travelling again, get a caravan sorted for us with everything we'll need." Bonnie replies. "Does that sound ok?"

"Yeah. That sounds great. Thank you, Bon." Bonnie presses a kiss to her head in reply, pulling her into his arms to lay them both back against the sofa cushions. "Pol said you can stay here with me, if you want to." She says quietly, resting her head on Bonnie's chest, feeling the vibrations in his chest as he hums in response.

"'Course I'll stay with you, love." He replies in the same tone. "Can I suggest something, Edie?" Edith nods, motioning for Bonnie to continue. "Tell your brothers. At least one of them. Or Michael. I'll need to tell Mr Maine that I'll be gone for a while, that'll get back to Tommy pretty quickly. He'll know you've gone with me; I think it would be better coming from you than anyone else. Don't you think?" Edith reluctantly nods, biting her lip.

"I'll phone Finn before we leave. You tell me when we're ready to go and you let Mr Maine know, and I'll get ahold of Finn." She decides after a minute of silence, the young couple falling back into a comfortable silence as they rest by the fire.


	20. Chapter20

**Chapter 20**

**AN: This is just a short filler chapter, hope you enjoy! **

"Edith? Michael's here to see you." Polly says, sticking her head around the kitchen door. Edith frowns, wiping her hands on her apron as she heads out of the room, finding her cousin stood awkwardly in the centre of the hallway. He nods a greeting when he spots Edith, the young girl immediately walking straight into her cousin's arms, his encircling her body with a sigh of relief.

"Thought you were pissed off at me too." He admits, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head as she lets out a scoff.

"Nah." She says as she pulls away. "Come through to the kitchen, I've just put a cake in the oven. And I cooked a pie."

"Look at you, a proper domesticated housewife." Michael teases, nudging his shoulder into hers.

"As if!" Edith laughs, moving to fill the kettle. "I just needed something to do. Figured I'd cook Pol dinner, as a bit of a thank you."

"John said you turned him away the other night." Michael comments as he takes a seat at the table. "Figured you'd do the same with me."

"You know I'd never turn you away Michael." Edith replies, settling into a chair opposite Michael.

"I saw Bonnie in the street today. He said you were ok, I wanted to check in with you for myself though." He continues, leaning back in his chair.

"I'm fine." She says with a shake of her head. "But I'm not coming back to Small Heath. So don't think you're going to be able to change my mind." Michael sighs at this, raising his eyebrows at his cousin.

"Edith..." He tries, only to be cut off by Edith holding her hand up to stop him.

"No Michael. Don't bother. Don't waste your breath." Edith protests, rising from the table. "I'm done with the company. I'm done with the fucked up things my brothers do. I need time away..."

"They're your brothers Edith!" Michael protests. "Family!"

"Look what this family has brought upon your mother! And my sister! Grace!" Edith shouts in response, Michael now rising to meet her eye. "Ada's gone! So why can't I?"

"That's different! You're not Ada." Michael responds, shaking his head in disbelief. "You've always said that family comes first! And now what are you doing? Running away!"

"I'm protecting myself!" She exclaims, letting out a yell of anger as she turns away, her head in her hands. The two cousins stand in silence for a minute, Edith leaning against the counter, back still to Michael as she takes deep breaths, attempting to calm herself.

"I didn't come here to argue with you Edie." Michael says softly, walking around to her side of the table. "Edith?" He places his hand gently on the small of Edith's back, her body immediately turning, engulfing him in a tight embrace as she begins to sob. Michael stands frozen for a second before winding an arm around his cousin, his other hand coming up to cup the back of her head as she clenches her hands in his suit jacket.

"I hate this, Michael. I hate this." Edith sobs as Michael cradles her head to his chest. "I just want my big brothers back. The ones I knew before the war fucked them up."

"You're going to be ok. Everything's going to be ok." He assures her, rubbing his hand up and down her back. Edith takes a few minutes to calm fully, content in being rocked in her cousin's arms before pulling away, swiping at the tear streaks on her face.

"I'm going away Michael. I don't know for how long. I don't know where yet. But Bonnie and I are going travelling." She explains quietly, pulling out a seat to sit down, resting her head on the table. Michael takes a deep breath before joining her, taking a seat beside her at the table, pulling out a cigarette as he does so.

"Ok," he says slowly, nodding his head. "I get that. I can see why you feel like you need to get away. Your brothers won't let you without a fight though Edith. You know that, right?"

"I know. But it's not going to stop me." Edith replies stubbornly, turning her head to look at Michael.

"I figured." He says, running a hand over his face. "I'll miss you."

"I won't be gone forever." She says with a smile, nudging her foot against his leg.

"I know." He admits

"You can't get rid of me that quickly!" Edith teases rising from the table again. "Now, how about some cake?"

"Why do you not make cakes more often? This is great!" Michael says minutes later, mouth full as he cuts himself another slice of cake, Edith rolling her eyes with a laugh as she watches him, still tucking into her own piece.

"Can you imagine if I baked cakes at home? It's only me and Finn around to eat it. Scrap that! Finn would eat it all! Can you imagine how fat he'd get?" She jokes making Michael laugh.

"Well, you can always make cake for me." He offers with a smirk, Edith shaking her head in response, pouring herself another cup of tea.

"Oh! And have you get fat instead?" She teases, the pair falling into fits of laughter, unaware of Polly hovering in the doorway, smiling softly at the sight in front of her. "I'll make you another before I leave, how about that? But you have to promise you'll share it with Finn and Pol, deal?"

"Deal." Michael states, holding his hand out to Edith, who takes his hand in hers, shaking it firmly.

—————————

"Edith." A stern voice calls from behind the young couple as they load the last of their things into the caravan they had borrowed from Aberama. Edith curses under the breath, slowly turning to find Tommy stood behind them, hands shoved deep in his pockets. "What are you doing Edith?"

"What the fuck does it look like I'm doing, Tommy? I'm going travelling." She states not giving him time to reply, turning away from her brother, moving up the steps of the caravan away from him. "Look, Tommy, just go home." Edith sighs, stopping in the doorway and turning around again. "I just-" Edith gets cut off by Arthur storming down the lane shouting her name. "For fuck sake." She mutters under her breath, moving to stand back beside Bonnie, weaving her fingers through his. "How the fuck did they find us?" Bonnie gives her a sympathetic look, squeezing her hand tightly in his. "Let's just go."

"Edie..." He starts, eyes following Arthur who continues his path down the lane towards them.

"Bonnie, please." Edith whispers, begging Bonnie with her eyes, tears pooling there.

"Edith Mary Shelby. You get over here right now." Her oldest brother yells, coming to a stop beside Tommy, pointing to the ground in front of him. "Or so help me God-"

"Really Arthur?" Michael cuts him off with a scoff as he too heads down the lane. "We all know religion means fuck all to you. Settle down, eh?"

"Fucking hell." Edith breathes, tugging her hand free of Bonnie's to run her fingers through her hair. "It's like a fucking family meeting. Jesus Christ."

"I don't know what you think you're playing at young lady..." Arthur bellows, pointing his finger at Edith. "But you'd better buck up your ideas. This has gone far enough."

"You can't tell me what to do!" Edith explodes, rounding on her brother. "You're not my dad! You don't give a fuck what happens to me! All you care about it drink, drugs and that fucking company!"

"Edith, that's enough." Tommy cuts in, stepping forwards. "You know that's not true. We all care about you, which is why we're not going to let you run off like this."

"You. Can't. Stop me." Edith yells, throwing her hands in the air. "Just look, Tommy. Look what this fucking business has done to our family!" Edith cries, flinging her arms out to her sides this time. "Just let me go! Please!" Edith lets the silence settle around them, breathing hard as she glances between her brothers. "Please," she begs quietly. "I just need to get away from here for a while. I need to get out of Small Heath."

"Tommy. Just let her go." Michael says quietly, moving to stand beside Tommy. "Look at her, Tommy. Just look." Tommy grinds his teeth together before turning to look straight at Edith, finally taking in the sight before him. His baby sister was exhausted, he could tell by the slump of her shoulders, the bags under her eyes, the usual twinkle in them had disappeared; he was unsure when these changes had occurred, but he knew, he should have taken more time to keep an eye out for his sister.

"I'm sorry, Tommy." Edith eventually whispers, lips trembling as she watches her brother observe her stance. "I'm really sorry. But I need to go. I need to get away." Tommy nods once, pulling out a cigarette and placing it between his lips.

"You can't be serious Tom?" Arthur laughs incredulously from the other side of his brother, running his hands through his hair. Tommy nods again, turning away from Edith to face Arthur.

"Look at her, Arthur." Michael repeats his earlier words, also turning to face Arthur who eyes Edith once, immediately spotting the same things Tommy had, choosing not to comment on it. "Let her go, she'll be back." Michael says, turning to give Edith a warm smile.

"Go," Tommy says, not taking his gaze away from his brother. "Go on. Before I change my mind." Edith lets out a sigh of relief, mouthing a thank you to Michael as she follows Bonnie around to the front of the caravan, accepting his hand to help her up.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

**AN: This is just a fluffy filler chapter! Enjoy! **

Edith sighs as she lays back on the grass, raising her arm to shield her eyes from the sun. "It feels good to have the sun on my face," she says, turning her head to look at Bonnie who was sat on the steps of the caravan, mug of tea in his hand as he watches her, a smile plastered on his face. "And to get some fresh air. I've been stuck in the city for too long."

"Hmm, it does feel good." Bonnie hums in agreement, tilting his own head up to the sky.

"I still want to find a place to live in the countryside, like John and Esme." Edith continues. "And then travel from there when the weather is good. Stay home for the winter."

"That sounds nice." Bonnie says, resting his elbows on his knees as he listens to Edith. "With all your horses and babies." The pair laugh, remembering the conversation they had had last time they had travelled together.

"Come and lay with me?" Edith calls, extending her arm, wiggling her fingers in Bonnie's direction. He smiles at her, rising from his seat to take her hand in his, pressing a kiss to her wrist as he lowers himself onto the ground beside her. "I like having you close."

"I'm not going anywhere my love." He promises her, keeping her hand tucked in his as they lay in the sun.

"What?" Edith asks gently, watching as Bonnie's eyes search her face, a wide smile stretched across his own.

"Nothing," he replies, with a shake of his head.

"Bon..."

"You look happy." Bonnie comments. "Relaxed."

"I feel good." Edith agrees, leaning up to press a light kiss to his lips. "Different. A good different." She pauses as her smiles grows to match his. "I think it's you."

"What's me?" He asks, brows furrowed for a second.

"I think it's you that's made me happier, feel different." She admits, cupping his cheek with her hand. "Without you, I'd still be cooped up in my tiny bedroom in smoky, dirty Small Heath, following my brothers orders and being generally miserable. But you've given me the chance to get away from that. To be free, at last."

"I'm glad you feel that way. I like seeing this side of you, Edith. This is how you should feel all the time."

"I do. When you're by my side." Edith replies, wrapping her arm around his body to pull in him for a hug. "I love you Bonnie Gold."

"I love you Edith Shelby." He replies, pressing light kisses to her neck, moving slowly up to her jaw as they lay in each other's arms.

"Tell me three things I don't know about you." She says softly, sighing as Bonnie continues to press light kisses to her cheek. "Or, just any three things you want me to know." He pulls back, looking at her with furrowed brows in confusion.

"Three things you don't know about me?" He repeats, Edith nodding, letting out a hum of agreement. "Umm, ok. Can I have a minute to think about it?" Edith nods again, taking this time to press her own kisses to his jaw, her hand tracing gentle patterns on his bare arm.

"Wait here!" She says suddenly, jumping up from Bonnie's arms, leaving him laying on the ground watching her in confusion as she runs towards the caravan.

"Love? What are you doing?" He calls after her, turning his head over his shoulder to look for her.

"Just wait there!" She calls in response from deep within the caravan, Bonnie letting out a laugh at her statement.

"Where else am I going to go?" He teases, shaking his head as he lays his head back on the grass, hands intertwined over his chest as he goes back to thinking of three things to tell Edith.

"Aha!" He hears Edith shout, letting out another chuckle as he listens to her jump down the steps, opening his eyes when she walks past him, blocking the sun. "Got it." She says breathlessly as she drops back on to the ground beside him, Bonnie peeking one eye open to see what she had found.

"A book?" He asks, dropping his head to the side as Edith hums in agreement. "And what's this?" He taps the long tin case that Edith had placed on the ground beside her.

"Pencils." She says lightly, opening the case to pull out her favourite pencil for drawing. "I'm going to draw you, while you think of your three things."

"Draw me?" Bonnie repeats with a smile, Edith nodding enthusiastically in response as she opens her sketch pad to a clean page. "Ok..."

"No peeking 'til I'm done, 'kay?" Bonnie nods his head, turning onto his side to watch Edith work, head propped up on his hand as he does so, the pair falling back into a comfortable silence.

"Ok, I've got three. You ready?" Bonnie asks, sitting up in front of Edith, crossing his legs, his knees resting lightly against hers.

"Yep! Go!" She replies, glancing up briefly to meet his eyes, blowing him a kiss before ducking her head back down.

"Here we go," he starts, clearing his throat. "First, I thought I'd tell you about my mum."

"I'd like that." Edith says with a smile.

"Her name was Julianna, her and dad were childhood sweethearts. They met when they were 16, fell in love straight away."

"Aw, Bon. That's lovely." Edith comments, Bonnie nodding with a smile.

"She died when I was 13, really suddenly. It shocked us all. Anyway. She was so much fun. We used to try and play jokes on dad all the time, he used to pretend to hate it, but really he found it hilarious." Bonnie pauses at the memory, a small smile on his face as he runs a hand through his hair. "Second, I was 8 when I had my first fight-"

"Eight!" Edith exclaims, head snapping up to look at Bonnie, eyes wide with shock as he nods, eyes laughing. "You were still a baby! Did you win?"

"Of course I did!" Bonnie scoffs, winking at Edith who rolls her eyes at his cockiness. "It was at a fair. Won a pony, from the other family. Buttercup."

"You never did!" Edith exclaims with a laugh.

"I did indeed!" Bonnie replies, laughing. "She stayed with us all throughout my childhood. I loved that horse."

"I bet you did. You have a gentle soul." She says softly, reaching forward to cup Bonnie's cheek in her hand.

"A gentle soul in a fighter's body." He jokes, Edith rolling her eyes in response.

"Alright, what's number three?" She asks, leaning back again, picking up her pencil she had discarded on the grass.

"Number three," he repeats, gently placing his fingers under her chin to tilt her head up towards him again. "I love you."

"Bon...that doesn't count! I know that already."

"Ey, you didn't let me finish!" He chastises, flicking the end of her nose teasingly. "Can I carry on?" Edith rolls her eyes and nods, motioning with her hand for him to continue. "I've been in love with you, since the day I first laid eyes on you-"

"Bon..."

"Edie," he growls teasingly, narrowing his eyes at her. "Let me finish!" She lets out a giggle, holding her hands up in surrender. "I didn't know it at the time. I've never loved anyone other than family before, but God you captivated me. I couldn't look away. I couldn't get enough of you, I'm surprised you didn't get sick of me following you around all day, everyday." Edith shakes her head, giving him a gentle smile.

"Never."

"So. That's my last thing, I love you. More than anything. Forever. You're it for me." Bonnie finishes, eyes locked on hers.

"That better not be a proposal, Bonnie Gold." She whispers, tears pooling in her eyes, Bonnie teaching out to wipe the tears away.

"No. Not yet. I'll do it properly. One day. I just needed you to know." He replies softly.

"I love you." She responds, her voice thick with emotion. "Forever. You're it for me." Edith repeats Bonnie's words back to him, placing her sketch pad and pencils onto the grass to lean forwards, resting her forehead against his, pressing light kisses to his lips.

"Your turn." He says lightly, pinching her sides to make her squeal.

"Oh, way to ruin the moment Bon!" Edith teases with a laugh, pulling away to pick up her sketch pad again. "Ok, my turn. Number one. I once tried to keep a frog as a pet."

"Of course you did." Bonnie says with a laugh, laying back on the grass to focus completely on listening to Edith.

"His name was Mr Frog," Bonnie snorts, Edith giggling along before continuing. "I found him in Uncle Charlie's yard. Curly helped me catch him. I put him in a little box I found, covered it with my coat and carried it home. I tried to hide it in my room, but then Ada found it. And boy did she scream." Edith laughs loudly at the memory, remembering watching from the bed as Ada pulled open the top draw, letting out the loudest scream Edith had ever heard as Mr Frog had leapt out at her, sending all three of their older brothers racing up the stairs to see what was going on. "John found it hilarious. Arthur swore and then disappeared, he was definitely trying to hide his laughter. Tommy found it funny too, I could tell, but had to be the one to tell me off. He did help me catch Mr Frog though, and then marched me back to the yard to put him back where I'd found him. Finn and I pretended to be frogs for the rest of that week. We'd jump out at Ada to make her shriek. Gosh, those were the days." Bonnie smiles as he observes Edith in her most relaxed stance, head ducked down as she continued her drawing, smile stretched wide across her face.

"Number two," she sings, flopping back on to the grass, her head by Bonnie's feet, deciding she was done with her drawing of him. "You told me about your ma, so I'll tell you about mine." Bonnie reaches his hand out to squeeze her leg reassuringly as she takes a deep breath before continuing. "Her name was Mary, hence why my middle name is Mary. I don't remember her. At all. She died when I was 3 years old, she got ill very quickly after I was born, and she never really recovered. I do know that she used to take me to Uncle Charlie's yard all the time, he tells me stories sometimes, of how they would take me, Ada and the boys out into the fields on the horses. Apparently we would visit with her family, the Strong's, when they camped outside Small Heath. Polly says I look like her, like, exactly like her. She thinks..." Edith trails off, wrinkling her nose and shaking her head. "Nah, never mind. She was just ma, and she sounded great, and I wish, God I wish so badly that I could have known her better, not just from Uncle Charlie and Curly's stories and had more time to love her in person, and tell her I love her, and be able to give you more than that, but that's all I know."

"Do you have pictures?" Bonnie asks gently, reaching out to intertwine their fingers.

"I have one. It's at home. I'll have to show you when we go back."

"I'd like that." He admits, giving her hand a squeeze.

"Ok. Number three. When the boys were at war, Aunt Pol looked after me and Ada and Finn. She was pretty much the only mother I knew, that's why we're still so close now, I think. Anyway. She used to tuck me and Ada into bed together at night, we shared a bed back then, there wasn't much room in our house, Finn would lay at the end of the bed, Pol in the sheets between Ada and me, and she'd tell us all about the places she'd take us travelling when the war was over. God I used to dream about those days, counting down the days 'til we could all get away from Small Heath, even without knowing when the war would be over."

"And did you? Travel with Pol?" Edith scoffs and shakes her head.

"No. Course not. The boys came back. They got wrapped back up in the company. We never had the chance."

"How old were you when the boys came back?"

"Umm, I was just turning 7 I think." Edith replies. "I used to beg Polly, absolutely beg her to take me away, to get me away from Small Heath, away from my brothers who were drowning themselves in whiskey, and random ladies at the pub, and the fucking business."

"But she couldn't?"

"No. She never could. Because if we'd left, I'd have no brothers now. And Arthur heard me begging one day, clinging to Pol's skirts as she ignored another tantrum, dragging me around the kitchen kicking and screaming." The pair let out laughs as they picture a young Edith being dragged around the small kitchen by Pol's skirt, kicking and screaming as she went.

"What did Arthur do?" Bonnie chokes out between laughs.

"He was in one of his moods; yanked me up from the floor, carried me into my bedroom, sat me on the bed and left me there all evening. He took my book and my favourite teddy. Told me it was the consequence for behaving badly. That he'd had enough and that Tommy would deal with me when he got home."

"And did he?" Edith shakes her head with another laugh.

"I snuck out of my room once Arthur had left, Tommy found me sleeping on the bottom of the stairs, waiting for him. He held me, and listened to me cry about how unfair it was. He promised he'd take me travelling one day, if I stopped bothering Pol, and causing a fuss when it didn't happen when I wanted it to."

"But he didn't."

"Nope. The company took off. He forgot about his promise. But I'm here now. With you. And it's better than I could have imagined."

"I'm honoured that I could be the person to take you on this journey then, Edith."

"I'm glad it was you that's introduced me to this life too. So pleased. And I don't want to change this. I'm happy, here with you."

"I'm happy here with you too." Bonnie states, giving her hand another squeeze.

"Can I give you a number four?" Edith asks, rising on to her elbows to peer over at Bonnie who shakes his head, laughing.

"Um, that's not part of the rules of the game!"

"It's my game!" She exclaims with a laugh, jabbing Bonnie in the side. "I'm gonna tell you anyway!" She jumps up from the grass, swinging her leg over Bonnie's waist, straddling his hips as he remains laid on the ground. "I love you." Bonnie lets out a loud laugh as Edith giggles along, collapsing into his chest, his arms immediately encircling her body, holding her close. "And here. Your portrait!" She leans over, pressing her sketch pad into Bonnie's hands, his eyebrows rising as he looks at the picture.

"Edith. This is amazing." He breathes out, placing the pad on the grass to look up at Edith who blushes, hiding her head in his neck. "Where'd you learn to draw like that?"

"I dunno. I've always loved drawing." She replies, shrugging.

"You should draw more often, this is incredible. Have you got more in there?" Edith nods, passing the book back to Bonnie as he flips through the pages, some portraits of her family members, others, places she had seen. "Have you ever shown anyone these?"

"I mean, the boys and Ada have seen them I'm sure. I don't hide them or anything." Edith says, taking the book to flip through the images herself.

"You could sell these, Edie!" Edith lets out a laugh as she places the book back in the grass, rolling off of Bonnie to lay beside him again.

"Maybe one day." She says, closing her eyes, dropping her head to his shoulder as he turns his head, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

"Ah, there we go." Bonnie lets out a sigh of relief at the sight of smoke over the hill in front of them. Bonnie and Edith had been travelling for days with no sign of Bonnie's family, and he had begun to worry they had missed his sisters altogether.

"Hmm?" Edith stirs beside him, turning to rest her head on his shoulder.

"There they are." Bonnie replies, pointing over the hill, Edith following his hand with her eyes. "Finally."

"You were worried there for a second, eh, love?" She teases, sliding her arm through his as he lets out a chuckle.

"Nah. Course not." Edith lets out a laugh of her own, rolling her eyes as she tucks her body close to his.

"Are you not tired?" She asks, bringing a hand up to his face to brush his hair back from his forehead. "We've hardly stopped in days."

"I'm ok." He assures her, squeezing her thigh once and giving her a reassuring smile. "I'll get some food in me and have a nap when we get there. Care to join me?"

"I'd love to." She replies, pressing a light kiss to his jaw as she settles back in the seat, the pair content to sit in comfortable silence as they continue on their last leg of the journey.

* * *

"You nervous?" Bonnie whispers as he helps Edith down from the caravan, hands resting lightly on her hips as she raises her eyebrows at him.

"Me? Never." She replies teasingly, rolling her eyes as he takes her hand tightly in his, guiding her over to his family.

"Bonnie!" His youngest sister Nelly races across the field towards them, Bonnie dropping Edith's hand to catch his sister as she launches herself at him, hugging her tightly.

"Hey, little one." He coos, swaying her in his arms, bringing one hand down to pull his other younger sister, Annie, to his body as she runs to greet them, throwing her arms around his legs.

"Hi, you must be Edith. I'm Gwen." Bonnie's oldest sister greets Edith with a hug, the young girl timidly hugging her back. "And this is Iris." Edith smiles warmly at Bonnie's older sisters as she accepts a hug from Iris.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Bonnie's told me so much about you both." Bonnie wraps his arm around Edith's waist, pulling her close as his sisters laugh.

"All good things I hope!" Gwen jokes, Bonnie rolling his eyes in response.

"Come and get something to eat, you must be starving." Iris suggests, leading the young couple over to the fire where they settle on to the ground, gratefully accepting the steaming, hot bowls of food.

* * *

"Edith's great with the girls." Gwen comments as Bonnie helps her prepare dinner later that evening, the two of them watching as Edith chases Bonnie's younger sisters, niece and nephew around the field. "Nelly and Annie already love her."

"She's got lots of nieces and nephews." Bonnie replies with a smile. "She's had a lot of experience looking after them all while her brothers are at work."

"I have to say Bon, she's not at all what I expected."

"What do you mean by that?" Bonnie asks, pausing to look up at Gwen who shrugs.

"Well, I've always heard the Shelbys are hardened gangsters, all rough round the edges, swearing every other word. Edith's not like that at all. She's well put together, well spoken, she seems like a really sweet young girl. Not what I'd expect from a family a gangsters."

"Edith's not like her brothers. Her Aunt brought her up while her brothers were at war." Bonnie says, returning to chopping the vegetables in front of him. "Edith hates the life her brothers live. It kills her to see what they do. Which is why we decided to leave for a while. Get away from everything."

"How long have you been gone?"

"A few weeks." Bonnie replies, resting back on his heels to watch Edith with a smile as she swings his sister into her arms, spinning in circles with her, before gently lowering her to the grass again, the youngest Gold taking off running again. "We're lucky to have caught up with you."

"Are you going back soon? Or are you travelling with us for a while?" She asks, rising to place the pot of food on the fire.

"I think we'll travel with you for a while." He says, brushing his hands on his trousers as he stands. "It really is doing Edith a world of good already to be out of the city and away from the family business for a while."

"You really love her, don't you?" Gwen says gently as they settle beside the fire.

"I do." He replies, nodding as his eyes find Edith again.

"When are you going to ask her to marry you?"

"Wha- Gwen! Where did that come from?" Bonnie chokes out, eyes wide as he turns to his sister who smiles at him, eyebrows raised.

"You're going to, aren't you? You gave her that ring Bill made you, didn't you?"

"I did."

"So the next step is an engagement ring."

"We're not there yet Gwen." Bonnie states gently.

"You're not?" Gwen questions, looking at him in shock.

"What do you mean?"

"You seem like you are. To me, anyway. And Iris." She states. "Annie even asked if Edith was your wife when you turned up."

"She did?"

"Uh huh." Gwen hums, nodding her head. "So, how about it? When's it going to be?"

"Not yet. Ok? Let's get this drama with her family out of the way and then I'll go for it. It's not likely that her brothers would say yes at the moment anyway. They're probably holding Edith leaving against me."

"Well, don't leave it too much longer. There's a lot of love for you in that girl's eyes. And for her in yours. She's a good'un. Keep her close." Gwen states, cupping Bonnie's cheek with her hand.

"I will." Bonnie agrees, his smile widening as Edith and Annie rush past him in a fit of giggles, chasing after his youngest sister Nelly.

"Bonnie!" Nelly shrieks, doubling back to run towards her older brother. "Help me!" Bonnie lets out a laugh, scooping Nelly into his arms as she passes him, taking off across the field.

* * *

"Would you like me to braid your hair?" Edith calls softly to Nelly as she wanders over to the fire after dinner, looking around for a place to sit. Nelly responds with a grin and an enthusiastic nod, Edith pulling herself out from under Bonnie's arm and patting her lap for the younger girl to sit down.

"Have you got brothers and sisters, Edith?" Nelly asks as she settles into Edith's lap, the older girl brushing her fingers through her hair to section it off to start the braid.

"I do." Edith replies, continuing to run her fingers through Nelly's hair. "I'm the youngest, like you."

"Really?" Nelly gasps, twirling her fingers in the fabric of her night dress. "How many brothers and sisters do you have?"

"I've got four older brothers and one older sister."

"Woah!"

"I know!" Edith says with a laugh, her giggles reverberating through the young girl's body making her laugh too.

"Do you miss them when you go travelling with Bonnie?"

"Mmm, I do." Edith hums in response.

"Me too." Nelly sighs, her body relaxing against Edith's. "I miss Bonnie."

"He misses you all too. That's why we're here, to travel with you all for a while."

"You are?" Nelly exclaims, turning to face Edith with a grin, the older girl nodding, laughter twinkling in her eyes.

"Will your brothers and sister come travelling with us too?" Nelly asks, peering up at Edith who gives her a soft smile, pausing to think before replying.

"You know what, I'd like that. Maybe one day they will." She says finally, turning the little girl's body, continuing to pull her hair gently into a braid.

"I'd like to meet you brothers and sister." Nelly states.

"Maybe you'll get to one day." Edith repeats gently, the two girls letting silence fall between them.

"Daddy says I look like Gwen, do you look like you're big sister?" Nelly ask, her head filled with questions to ask the older girl.

"Hmm, not really." Edith replies, resting her hands back in the grass behind her to lean backwards. "My ma always said, I have my brother Tommy's eyes, my sister's smile, but I look most like my brother John."

"Where is your ma? Does she live with your brothers and sister?"

"No. My ma passed away, just like yours." Edith says gently, allowing Nelly to rest her body against her chest.

"Oh. That's sad." Nelly sighs, pausing to look up at the stars. "Daddy says my ma is living up there now. With the stars. Is that where your ma is too?"

"I'm not sure, maybe." Edith replies gently, tilting her head up to look at the sky. She glances over to her left when she feels a presence over her shoulder, smiling at Bonnie as he slides closer to the pair, having caught on to the conversation they were having.

"You ok?" He mouths to Edith, nodding his head towards his younger sister, his girlfriend replying with a gentle smile and a nod of her head. Bonnie sits back again, close enough for Edith to still feel his body heat radiating off his body on to her, leaving the two girls to carry in talking.

"I don't really remember my mama." Nelly says looking back at Edith who gives her a small smile, raising her eyebrows. "Daddy doesn't like to talk about her. It makes him sad. But sometimes Bonnie does."

"I bet Bonnie tells you the best stories about your ma?" Edith asks, Nelly nodding enthusiastically in reply.

"And sometimes I dream about her." The young girl replies, Edith smiling softly at the innocence of the conversation they were having.

"I do too." She whispers, rubbing Nelly's arm gently. "It's probably time for your bed time, eh?" The young girl groans, tilting her head to the side, searching for Bonnie who immediately appears beside her, teasing smile etched on his face.

"Edith's right, little one. It's time for bed." Nelly groans again, allowing her brother to lift her into his arms nonetheless. "Say goodnight to Edith." He says, allowing Nelly to reach down, wrapping her arms around Edith's neck in a hug, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Night night, Edith."

"Night night, Nelly." Edith repeats, blowing her kisses as Bonnie rises again, carrying his sister off to bed.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

"I think we should go back." Edith says, running her fingers lightly over Bonnie's chest, one night a couple of months into travelling with Bonnie's family.

"To Small Heath?" He clarifies, his fingers weaving through her hair as she nods. "Ok."

"I have a bad feeling," she says softly, lifting her head to look Bonnie in the eye as he frowns.

"Ok," he repeats, brushing her hair back off her face. "Let's go back then, we can head off in the morning?" Edith nods, resting her head back on his chest, sighing deeply as she shuts her eyes.

* * *

"What's going on?" Iris calls from the steps of her caravan, leaning over the banister to watch Bonnie pack up the bits he had used to make breakfast. "You're up early."

"We're heading back to Small Heath." He replies, heading over to his sister, leaning against the banister below her. "Edith feels like something is wrong. I need to get her back to her brothers."

"Will you be back before Christmas?" Bonnie sighs and runs a hand over his face with a shake of his head.

"I don't know, Iris. It'll take us at least three or four days to get back to Small Heath, I'd have to drop Edith off and then do the whole journey again by myself; it's quite the trek." He admits. "I'd have loved to if we'd been closer to home."

"So Small Heath is home now?" Iris asks lightly, raising her eyebrows. Bonnie sighs and slumps down on to the steps, not prepared to argue with his sister so early in the morning, especially when his mind was filled with Edith and how to get her home as soon as possible.

"I don't know Iris. Yes? I guess so?" He shakes his head to gather his thoughts as Iris settles on to the step beside him. "For now, it is. Home for me is where Edith is. I have a life in Small Heath with Edith, and the Peaky Blinders. There's a gym to fight at, fights lined up ready for me in the new year."

"But it's not the open air that you're used to." Iris counters, Bonnie shrugging in response.

"It's not. But it won't be this way forever. Edith and I want to settle down in the country somewhere, close enough to see her family, with land to keep a caravan so that we can travel with you all too." He responds, rubbing at his temples.

"The best of both worlds." His sister says, Bonnie humming in response. "As long as you're happy, Bon."

"I'm happy, Iris." He assures her, turning to face her. "I really am. I wouldn't change this for the world."

"Then we're happy for you too." She replies, rising to her feet, holding her hand out to pull Bonnie up off the step. "Now go and get your girl home. We'll finish packing up here, I'll talk to Gwen. We'll follow you either later today or tomorrow, find somewhere just outside Small Heath to stay for Christmas. You and Edith can decide what to do when you get back." Bonnie lets out a breath of relief, hugging his older sister tightly as a silent thank you, giving her one last squeeze before pulling away and jogging off to find Edith.

* * *

Bonnie and Edith return to Small Heath late at night, nearing the end of the week. They spend a final night alone together just outside of the city, heading back to Watery Lane in the morning for Edith to find Tommy, Bonnie deciding to leave her to it and take some time back in the gym. Bonnie leaves Edith in the doorway of the Shelby Company offices, pressing a lingering kiss to her lips as she clings to the lapels of his coat, reluctant to let him go.

"You'll be ok. Come and find me when you're done, eh?" He says gently, brushing his lips lightly over hers as he talks, kissing her once more before gently pushing her through the open door. "Go on, get out of the cold, love." Edith nods, giving him a weak smile as she walks backwards into the building, turning to walk slowly up the stairs to her brother's office. The few days they had been travelling had given Edith time to think through what she would say to her brothers when she saw them next. Her oldest brothers would be the hardest, that much she knew. They were, in her eyes, stuck in their ways, the war having changed them drastically, no longer being the fun loving boys she had known before they had gone to France. Inside, she was dreading this meeting with Tommy, turning up at his office unannounced, but her exterior remained steely as she pushed open the door to the meeting room she could see Tommy residing in.

"You're back." Tommy comments as she enters the room, barely looking up from the paperwork in front of him. Edith stops still in her tracks, taking in her brother's statement. She hadn't expected a welcome home party from her brother after not having spoken in months, but the coldness of his greeting had shocked her.

"I am." She replies, equally as curtly as she pulls off her hat, laying it on the desk.

"Why?" Edith frowns at Tommy's question, slipping her coat off and throwing it over the back of the chair beside her.

"You're not happy to see me?" She questions, arms hanging loosely at her sides, brows furrowed as she eyes Tommy, waiting for his eyes to meet hers.

"I didn't say that." He replies, still not looking up from the desk, angering Edith even more.

"No but you thought it." She spits out, arms coming to cross over her chest.

"Don't put words into my mouth."

"They talk sense, Tommy. Tell me what you really think. Go on." Edith prompts him, stepping slightly closer to her brother who finally looks up, eyes locking with hers.

"I think you've been acting like a spoilt brat." He starts, eyes still locked on hers. Edith's face remains the same, no change except the rate of her heartbeat to indicate the shock she felt at his reply. "I think, that this has gone on for long enough. We've let you get away with too much for too long."

Edith takes a second before replying, refusing to let Tommy see how hurt she was by his words, "Oh yeah? Like what?"

"Arthur has moved away. Did you know that?" Tommy asks, deciding to change the course of the conversation as he rises from his chair.

"I didn't."

"And John, he's gone too."

"I know."

"Ada's stayed in Boston."

"Good for her. Maybe I should have gone too. Stayed away. God knows why I came back. Pride probably. Family." Edith's resolve finally begins to crack as Tommy inches towards her with each new statement, her temper beginning to break through.

"Maybe you should have. Come back a better person, rather than this smart mouthed little brat that thinks she can square up to her big brother." He suggests, stopping in front of her, hands in his pockets.

"You don't scare me Tommy." She states, voice still strong, despite her heart racing in her chest.

"Ok." He says with a shrug.

"Don't you see what you've done?" Edith questions with a bitter laugh, cocking her head to the side.

"What I've done?"

"Yes Tommy. What you've done."

"And what exactly have I done, Edith? Eh? Tell me." He questions, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Pol's gone. Arthur's gone. John's gone. Ada's gone." Edith ticks each family member off on her fingers as she talks, holding eye contact with Tommy the whole time. "I'm half way out the door. Finn'll be next, I'm sure. Michael." She pauses to laugh, shaking her head. "Well, saw him this morning. He's clearly going down the same path as Arthur. High as a fucking kite too. Tried to hide it. But he couldn't, of course. Too fucking far gone. Just like the rest of them. Hey, maybe I should give that a go? Maybe you'll notice me finally."

"Oh I notice you plenty. No need for drugs to make your temper worse."

Edith scoffs, rolling her eyes. "Oh, but it's ok for Arthur to use drugs. Makes his temper worse too, doesn't it?" Tommy raises his eyebrows at her, pulling out a cigarette as she continues to scan his face. "You've changed."

"Haven't we all." Tommy replies sarcastically, briefly glancing up at Edith before turning his back on her, clearly finished with the conversation.

"But you most of all." She says softly, turning to pull her hat and coat back on. "You're not the big brother I knew. You're not the man that brought me up, chased me through the streets of Small Heath, took me to my first picture show, held me when I had nightmares, was held by me, when you had yours. You're not the one I learnt to love." At Tommy's lack of response, she shrugs at his back, shaking her head with a bitter laugh. If her words had hurt him as his did her, he didn't show it, choosing to ignore his sister as she continues to look him up and down. "Whatever." Edith pauses at the door, half in the room, half out as she watches Tommy walk to the end of the office, sitting back down behind the table. "I came back because the spirits came to me. If you're interested."

"I'm not." He states, picking up his pen once more. "You're starting to sound like Pol."

"Then maybe you should listen to Pol." Edith replies, stepping into the hallway. "There's trouble coming Thomas. Not that you'd even care."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"You're drawing." Finn comments as he walks up behind Edith, hands shoved deep in his pockets, as he heads towards his sister who was sat at the top of a hill overlooking Small Heath. "I've not seen you do that in a while."

Edith turns, giving him a smile as he approaches her, settling himself onto the grass beside her. "I needed an escape."

"Your three months away didn't do the trick?" Finn teases earning a small smile from his sister. He takes the pad of paper from her hands, holding it up at eye level to observe the picture she had drawn, the image matching perfectly with the view of Small Heath in front of them. Finn nods approvingly as he hands the paper back, laying back on the grass, hands clasped behind his head.

"It did." She replies, bringing her pencil back to the paper. "Then I saw Tommy. And all the calm disappeared again."

"Ah." Finn says slowly, nodding his head. "I see." She glances over at him, watching him as he shuts his eyes, sitting together in silence for a few minutes.

"I want my big brother back." Edith says quietly, biting her lip as tears pool in her eyes, her vision blurring as she continues to sketch her view of Small Heath. The facade that she had held since leaving Tommy's office that morning was now starting to crumble with her closest brother at her side, Edith finally felt she could let the hurt show.

"I know." Finn says softly, rolling on to his side, propping his head on his hand to look up at her. "I know you do."

"Do you not want that too?" She asks, shifting her body to face her brother, placing her sketch pad onto the grass beside her.

"It's different for me." Finn mutters, reaching out to squeeze her hand.

"How is it different?" Edith questions, furrowing her brow.

"Because I get it, Edith. I want to be a part of it all. You've always been against it-"

"Because they do bad things, Finn!" She exclaims, cutting Finn off as he sighs, shaking his head.

"Oh, Edith..." he mutters, running a hand through his hair.

"What?" She shouts, throwing her hands in the air. "What, Finn?"

"Give him a break, eh?"

"You're joking."

"I'm not. You don't know what's been going on since you've been gone-"

"Everyone's left, Finn! They're sick of Tommy's shit! I'm sick of Tommy's shit!"

"Then fuck off, Edith!" Finn shouts, bolting upright as Edith gawps at him, stunned into silence by his outburst. "Fuck, off. Go back to your fucking little caravan with Bonnie. Start the life you want. But don't sit here complaining, not doing anything about it."

"Fuck you." She spits, tears burning at the back of her eyes as she gathers her things into her arms, storming off back down the hill.

"Fuck." Finn mutters to himself, rubbing at his face as he thinks about his outburst to Edith, instantly regretting his choice of words.

———————————————————————

Without a backwards glance at Finn, Edith heads off down the hill, back into the muggy lanes of Small Heath, fighting back her tears as she lets her feet carry her back towards the Shelby offices. She finds herself making her way into Michael's office, collapsing into one of the chairs placed around his desk, head in her hands as she catches her breath from her fast walk through the town. Edith places her book and pencil case down on the table, walking around the small office, taking in the few possessions Michael kept in there. When she reaches his coat hanging by the door, she sticks her hands into the pockets, searching for a tin of cigarettes. With a small smile, she pulls a tin loose from one pocket, placing the cigarette between her lips, inhaling deeply as she lights the stick. She carefully places the box and lighter back into the pocket, frowning as she hears the tell tale sound of the metal tin hitting something glass in the bottom of the pocket. Dropping her hand back into the coat, Edith pulls out two blue vials, instantly identifying the contents of the bottles which she stores in her own pocket, ready to confront Michael when he returned.

———————————————————————

"What's this?" Edith asks, holding up the blue vials she had pulled from Michael's coat, making him jump as he enters the office, unaware his cousin had been sat there.

"Fucking hell, Edith. You scared me." He grunts, kicking the door shut behind him.

"What, is this?" She repeats, waving the vials in the air, holding them between her fingers.

"You know what it is." He states, throwing a bundle of papers on to the cabinet by the door.

"I want to hear you say it."

"It's snow."

"Huh. Really?" She asks sarcastically, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah. Really. Now give 'em here."

"And what are you doing with snow? Eh?"

"What's it to you?" He asks snarkily, snatching the vials off his cousin, shoving them into his trouser pocket. "And what were you doing going through my things?"

"I was looking for a cigarette." She replies, waving the burning stick in the air.

"Well they're clearly not cigarettes." He snaps in reply, rounding the desk and dropping into his chair. "And you shouldn't be smoking anyway. What would Tommy say?"

"Fuck Tommy and what he says." Edith states in reply, lifting the cigarette to her lips again, taking a final drag. "Fucking prick."

"Excuse me?" Michael grounds out, eyebrows raised.

"He's a fucking prick." Edith repeats, leaning over the desk to pull another cigarette out of the tin Michael was opening.

"You shouldn't talk about your brother that way." He grunts, placing his own cigarette between his lips, reaching out to light Edith's for her.

"Ok. Then you're a fucking prick." She replies, dropping back into the chair, arms crossed over her chest as Michael sighs.

"Watch your language."

"You're not my father."

"No, but I am your cousin. Your older cousin. And you'd be wise to watch what you say around here." Michael states, motioning to the slightly ajar door behind them.

"Oh really? What's Tommy gonna do? Eh? Send me away? I'd fucking happily go." Edith replies, shrugging her shoulders.

"Edith, that's enough."

"Oh, drop the tough guy act, Michael. We both know that's not who you are." She states with a roll of her eyes.

"For fuck sake Edith."

"Bloody hell."

"All I'm saying-"

"Yeah! All you're saying is that I should let Tommy control my life!" Edith cuts him off, rising from her chair.

"That is not what I said." Michael says slowly, raising his hands.

"No but you're thinking it."

"Grow up, Edith." He sighs, shaking his head.

"You know, I came here because I thought you were the one person in this family I could turn to. How fucking wrong was I?" She questions, letting out a scoff. Michael freezes, his hand hovering above the documents he was reaching for.

"Edith-"

"No." Edith snaps, turning back to face Michael, letting the tears flow freely down her face. "No. I get it. It's fine. Things have clearly changed since I've been gone."

"Edith, come on. I'm sorry, let me help." Michael tries again, softer this time as he rises from his chair.

"I don't need your help." She states bitterly, swiping at the tears streaming down her cheeks. She turns on her heel, ignoring Michael's shouts after her as she storms back through the building and out on to the streets of Small Heath.

———————————————————————

Nearly an hour later, Edith finally reaches her next stop, leaning heavily against the door way to the house, she pulls out the cigarettes she had picked up on the way. Leaning against the house, she smokes through a cigarette before turning and knocking on the door.

"Aunt Pol? I want you to read my tea leaves."

———————————————————————

**AN: I'm very conscious that I don't want Edith to become too 'whiney', but I'm keen to show the change in her character and the family dynamics so this is the route I'm taking her for now, but I think there will be another slight shift as the story goes on, and in how her relationships with different family members is also shifting and changing. Hope you're all enjoying! **


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25 **

Edith rocks back and forth on her heels as she waits on the front step of the house she had just arrived at, glancing around to take in the property it sat on as she waits for the door to be answered. She freezes as the door whips open, plastering on a smile as her older brother falters, not expecting to find her stood there. "Hello Arthur!"

"How did you get here?" Arthur grunts, leaning against the doorframe as he takes in his little sister, wind swept hair, boots covered in mud, standing on his door step, at barely 8 o clock in the morning. Edith rolls her eyes at her brother's greeting, making no comment on it as she smiles up at him.

"I rode. On Lavender. She's outside. Hope that's ok." Edith says, pointing behind her to the horse she had tied up behind them. Arthur sighs, nodding nonetheless.

"I guess so."

"Look, Arthur. I know we left off on a bad note. I'm really sorry about that. I just-" Edith pauses, biting her lip as she looks up at her oldest brother. "Can I give you a hug? Please?" Tears pool in her eyes as she waits for what feels like hours, but in reality is only seconds before Arthur responds, opening his arms for his baby sister. She lets out a loud sigh of relief, followed by a small chuckle, collapsing into her brothers chest, wrapping him in a tight hug, Arthur pulling her just as tightly into his arms.

"You coming in? Or are you just going to stand out here in the cold?" He asks as they pull apart, Edith wiping a stray tear from her cheek as she lets out another light laugh.

"Well I was hoping you'd invite me in. Maybe let me put the kettle on? Nab a biscuit?" She asks, stuffing her hands in her pockets.

"Come on. Get in. Linda'll kill me for letting the warmth outta the house standing out here with you." Edith steps into the house, nearly walking into her sister in law as she looks over her shoulder at Arthur, asking where his wife was.

"Oof, sorry Linda!" Edith gasps, Arthur grabbing her arms to stop her falling backwards. She timidly puts her arms around the older woman, pulling away once she had received a light pat on the back, following Arthur through to the kitchen.

The siblings shared a silent cup of tea (plus a few biscuits for Edith) in the kitchen, before Edith excuses herself to check on Lavender, returning to the living room where Arthur had moved to

"Oi! Fucking hell Edith!" Arthur grunts with a laugh as Edith jumps on to the sofa beside him, snuggling into his arms.

"I've missed you!" She laughs, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug, the awkwardness from earlier already forgotten.

"Edith! Get your shoes off the sofa!" Linda exclaims as she enters the living room, rolling her eyes as Arthur gives her a pointed look. "Please." Edith raises her eyebrows at Arthur, throwing Linda an apologetic smile as she slips her legs off the sofa.

"Is he asleep?" Edith asks, nodding towards the sleeping baby in his pram in the corner of the room, Arthur nodding in response. "Can I hold him? When he wakes up I mean."

"Course you can." He replies, pulling out a cigarette. "And you can tell me all about your travels." Edith turns slowly back to her brother, eyes wide with shock. "What?"

"You want to know about my travels?" She clarifies, Arthur nodding again. "With Bonnie?" She shakes her head as he nods again. "The trip you were adamant I wasn't going to take." Arthur nods again, resting back on the arm of the sofa, eyes raking over his sister as he takes in the changes to her since she had been gone. "Ok. Who are you? And what have you done with my big brother?"

"Look, let me tell you something. Ok?" Edith nods for Arthur to continue. "When you left, Tommy, John, Michael and I all sat down to chat, alright?" Edith nods again, settling back against the sofa cushions. "You seem happy, Edith. Really happy, and that's what ma would have wanted. Bonnie is a good guy." Edith hums in reply, raising her eyebrows.

"Wow..." she scoffs, letting out a chuckle. "What made you change your tune like that?" Arthur lets out a chuckle of his own, nodding his head in Linda's direction, the older woman smiling softly as Edith who gives her a grateful smile.

"I know what it's like to be in love." He replies, patting Edith's knee. She smiles up at her big brother, resting her head against his shoulder as they sit in silence, both staring into the fire roaring in front of them.

"Saw Tommy yesterday." Edith mutters, breaking the silence as she pulls a cigarette out of the holder Arthur had thrown onto the table.

"How did that go?" He asks, shaking his head at her offer of another cigarette.

"Terribly." She grunts, dropping her head onto the back of the sofa, looking up at the ceiling. "The conversation you and Tom, John and Michael had when I left. Yeah. He doesn't feel like that anymore."

"What happened?" Arthur asks, changing his mind as he plucks the cigarette from between her fingers and taking a drag before passing it back.

"He told me I'm acting like a spoilt brat. He doesn't fucking listen, Arthur." Edith pauses, shooting a side glance at Linda who was settled into the armchair beside the fire, rolling her eyes at her sister-in-law's choice of language. "Sorry, Linda. But he doesn't. There's trouble coming, Arthur. I can feel it."

"Tommy's got a lot on his mind..."

"Yeah, and there'll be a lot more with whatever I've sensed is coming. Come on, Arthur. You believe me, don't you?"

"I do. 'Course I do..." Arthur starts, trailing off slowly.

"But?"

"But..." Arthur repeats slowly, shrugging his shoulders.

"Here we go..." Edith groans, taking a long drag of the cigarette as she turns away from her oldest brother.

"Edith." He chastises lightly, tapping her knee.

"Sorry. Continue." She replies with a roll of her eyes, which is quickly reciprocated by Arthur.

"Thanks for the permission."

"You're welcome." She jokes sarcastically, smiling over at her brother who raises his eyebrows.

"I think you need to cut him some slack." Arthur states, holding up his hands to stop Edith from cutting in as she scoffs, narrowing her eyes at him. "Edith. Just let him do what he needs to do. Ok? Just leave him be. Try not to start any more fights with him for now. Eh?"

"You're one to talk." Edith scoffs, crossing her arms over her chest. "Fine. Yes. I'll try. Ok? Happy?"

"Very happy." Arthur grunts, rolling his eyes at Linda who gives him a small smile.

"And that's all you're going to say?" Edith asks, dropping the cigarette butt into the tray on the table.

"Eh?"

"That's it? You're not telling me anything else? About what Tommy's working on? What's been going on in the business." She clarifies, waving her hand about in the air.

"No. Not now." Arthur replies, running a hand through his hair. "Now, how about you tell me about your adventure? Eh?"

———————————————————————

Edith pops her head over the back of the sofa as she hears the front door shut, calling out Bonnie's name, smiling up at him as he pokes his head around the door, stepping in to give her a quick kiss.

"I'm going to go and clean up. I won't be long." He says, brushing his thumb over her cheek as she pulls him in for another kiss, humming in response.

"Did you win?" She calls out, watching Bonnie head towards the stairs, smiling as he pauses and turns back to face her, rolling his eyes teasingly in response.

"'Course I did." He relies with a wink before jogging up the stairs.

"You spoken to Finn yet?" Bonnie asks as returns to the living room, dropping onto the sofa beside Edith, laying down to rest his head in her lap.

"No. I haven't seen him since I got back from Pol's." Edith replies, threading her fingers through Bonnie's hair.

"How is Polly?"

"She's fine."

"You should try and talk to Finn." He suggests, tilting his head to look up at Edith who gives him a soft smile, nodding her head.

"I will." She says, Bonnie smiling up at her. "When he apologises."

"Edie..." Bonnie draws out, lifting his head and giving her a warning look as she laughs.

"I'm joking!" She replies, shaking her head in amusement as Bonnie lowers his head back to her lap. "I just haven't seen him, is all. I'll talk to him when he gets home." She pauses as she runs her fingers back through Bonnie's hair, massaging at his scalp gently. "Bon, we need to talk about something."

"Ok?" He replies slowly, sitting up to face Edith. "What's wrong?"

"When I went to Aunt Pol's yesterday, I asked her to read my leaves." Edith explains, Bonnie frowns, trying to connect the dots to understand what Edith was telling him.

"Ok..." he draws out, brow furrowed in confusion. "And what did she see?"

Flashback

_"Aunt Pol? I want you to read my tea leaves." Edith states as Polly opens the door, ushering her niece in out of the cold. _

_"It's about time you came around for a reading." Polly says, turning to head back through the house, Edith following her towards the kitchen. She glances back to look at Edith, her eyes darting quickly down to Edith's stomach and back up again. _

_"I know." Edith sighs, dropping into a seat at the table while Polly potters around the kitchen. _

_"And I'm guessing it's young Bonnie that's got you into this mess?" Polly motions to Edith's stomach, the young girl instinctively resting her hand there, nodding her head. "Well, let's have a look then." Polly sighs, pushing a tea cup towards Edith who takes it with a sigh of her own. _

"I've been feeling off, for a while..." Edith continues, trailing off as Bonnie frowns.

"Edie, you never said anything." He replies, brow furrowed as he takes Edith's hand in his.

"I didn't want to worry you, if it wasn't...but the feeling hasn't gone away. And I've been having these weird dreams. That's why I went to see Aunt Pol. So she can help me make sense of them. It's almost like I'm seeing our future or something, but it's hard to remember them. I kind of knew something was off when we were travelling. I don't know if they told you, but your sisters were desperate to read my tea leaves but I didn't let them. I didn't want them to know before you."

"Edith. You're confusing me. What's going on?" Bonnie cuts in, squeezing Edith's hand in his.

"I asked Aunt Pol to you read my leaves...because I thought I was pregnant..."

"You thought you were...or you are?" Bonnie asks gently, cupping Edith's cheek in his hand. "Edith? Did Polly see something?" Edith nods this time, reaching over to take his hand in hers. "And?"

"And..." Edith starts, trailing off as she searches Bonnie's eyes, locked on hers. "I am." Bonnie's eyes widen, Edith biting her lip as she watches for his response.

"We're having a baby." He states, Edith's heart pounding in her chest as she waits for him to move.

"Are you...are you ok Bon?" She asks quietly, gently taking her hand out of his and pushing herself up to sit against the arm of the chair.

"Am I ok?" He repeats with a laugh, shifting forward towards Edith. "I should be asking you that! You're carrying our baby!" Bonnie laughs again, running a hand over his face. "Bloody hell, love! We're having a baby!" Bonnie leans forward, pulling Edith in to a tight hug, who immediately collapses into his arms, letting out a sigh of relief, wrapping him in a tight hug. "Come here." Bonnie moves to stand, gently nudging Edith forward so that he could sit behind her with Edith sat between his legs, resting back against his chest. Bonnie snakes his arms around her waist, slipping his hand under her top to rest on her stomach.

"We were so careful." Edith whispers shakily, her eyes shut as she rests her head back on Bonnie's shoulder. He presses a kiss to her temple as she lets out another shaky breath.

"I know." Bonnie replies, nodding his head. "But things happen for a reason, you always say that Edie."

"I do." She agrees, resting her hand in top of his on her stomach. "Fuck." She groans, tipping her head into Bonnie's neck. "Tommy's going to kill me. And Arthur. Shit. And John. My brothers are going to kill you!" Edith's head snaps up, her body quickly following as she turns to face Bonnie who cups her face in his hands.

"Edith, breathe." He commands, leaning up to capture her lips in his. "We'll be fine, everything is going to be fine." Edith nods slowly, biting her lip again as she twirls her rings around her fingers.

"We'll go travelling again." She states, pointing her finger at Bonnie who lets out a laugh, rolling his eyes at her. "We'll only tell Ada where we're going. She won't tell Tommy or the boys. We'll just say we're going away with your family again for a while! Ada can join us just before the baby's born and then we can come back. What's Tommy going to do then? He won't kill you if the baby's already here!" Bonnie shakes his head at her, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Edie. Love. We're not running away." He states, brushing his thumbs over her cheeks.

"It's not running away!" She protests. "It's travelling."

"We're not going travelling." Bonnie replies, Edith narrowing her eyes at him. "Love, we're going to stay where you're safe, comfortable and have Polly, Ada and Millie all within calling distance should we need them." Edith sighs, recognising that what Bonnie was saying made sense. She drops forwards again, back into Bonnie's arms which quickly encircle her body again, running his hand up and down her back. "How do you feel?" He asks.

"Sick." Edith replies, curling an arm around Bonnie's body. "Nervous. But excited."

"Me too." Bonnie says softly, smiling down at Edith as she tilts her head to look up at him.

"Are you happy?" Edith asks, running her fingers through Bonnie's hair.

"I am." He states. "Are you?" Edith smiles, nodding in response. The young pair lay in silence for a while, enjoying being in each other's company, both of them thinking about the baby they would be adding to their families.

"God I was so nervous to tell you." Edith finally days, breaking the comfortable silence.

"Why?" He asks, tilting his head to look Edith in the eye.

"I don't know!" Edith laughs, shaking her head. "It's just...we hadn't planned this."

"I know. It's a little earlier than we planned on starting a family, but at least we've got plenty of time to have all those babies you wanted." He jokes, leaning down to kiss Edith as she laughs.

"Bonnie!" She giggles, shaking her head.

"Hey, I'm right, aren't I?" He replies, Edith burying her head in his chest with a groan.

"And look. You have this." He says, twirling Edith's promise ring around her finger. "I'm not going anywhere. We have all the time in the world."

"I'm not going anywhere either." Edith promises, pressing her lips to Bonnie's in a deep kiss.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26 **

Pushing open the door to Finn's room, Edith sticks her head around the door, smiling at the sight of her brother still dozing in bed. She tiptoes into the room, sliding under the covers and resting her head beside Finn's on his pillow. He lets out a groan as she cuddles up to him, wrapping his arm around her nonetheless. "Morning." She whispers, letting her eyes drift shut again as she lets out a yawn.

"Morning," Finn repeats, turning his head to press a kiss to her forehead. "You ok?"

"Yeah. Just wanted to lie with you for a bit. Bon's gone off to the gym already. I thought we could talk." Edith replies, smiling as Finn nods against the pillow. "I'm sorry for what I said the other day."

"No, I should be apologising, Edith. You were upset and I wasn't helping." Finn cuts her off gently, rolling on to his side to face her. "Millie told me you have some news?" Edith smiles, heart beginning to pound as she contemplates how her brother would react to the news.

"I'm having a baby." She says softly, holding her breath as she feels Finn do the same beside her, nodding his head slowly.

"I figured you were going to say that...well, that or that you and Bonnie were getting married..."

"Oh...no. Not yet." Edith replies with a shaky smile. "We haven't really...that's not our plan yet..."

"I'm happy for you, Edith." Finn states, cupping her cheek in his hand. "Really happy. You seem so much more relaxed around Bonnie. And you've wanted babies for as long as I can remember..."

"I have." Edith agrees with a laugh. "Thank you, Finn."

"You'll name the baby Finn, right? After your favourite brother?" He teases eliciting a scoff from Edith as she pushes him away playfully.

"Dream on." She laughs as they both descend into laughter.

———————————————————————

Edith glances up from the cup she had been staring into, lost in thought, as the doors to the betting shop creak open to reveal Finn.

"Who was on the phone?" She asks as he shuffles past her, back through the double doors and into their kitchen.

"Tommy. He needs to see you at his house." Finn mutters in reply, letting out a long yawn.

"He called at barely 8 o'clock in the morning to tell me that?" She questions, raising her eyebrows at her older brother who shrugs, dropping down into the chair opposite her.

"Apparently. Said it was urgent." He replies, reaching forwards to take her mug in his hands, taking a long sip of her tea.

"When is it not urgent with Tommy?" She retorts, earning a small smile from Finn. "Think you could drive me over to Tommy's?" Finn grumbles in reply, nodding nonetheless as Edith potters around the kitchen, clearing her breakfast plates.

———————————————————————

By the time Polly arrives at Arrow House nearly an hour later, having woken to Finn's rambling phone call about his siblings fighting (and maybe a threat of death from one - or both- of them), she can hear Edith and Tommy's shouting from the driveway. Patting Finn's back as she passes him in the hallway, she hovers outside Tommy's office, where the shouts were increasing in volume, listening in on their conversation.

"He knows." Finn mutters as he approaches Polly, hands shoved deep in his pockets. "I don't know how, but he knows."

"Knows what?" Polly hisses, glancing back at Finn who sighs, rolling his eyes.

"That she's pregnant." He states, motioning towards the door leading to the room where Tommy and Edith were still arguing.

"Fucking hell..." Polly mutters, raising her hand to her forehead.

Inside the room, Tommy was pacing the floor behind his desk, frantically running his hands through his hair, chain smoking cigarettes as Edith stands in front of his desk, hands clenched at her sides.

"You're 18 years old!" He shouts, turning on his heel and pointing his finger in her face.

"I'm a fucking adult, Tommy!" She replies, matching his volume and tone easily, after all, he had been the one to teach the young girl to talk and fight back for herself at a young age (something he was very much regretting at this particular moment, as the volume of her voice was doing wonders for the banging headache raging behind his eyes).

"You are a child!" He retorts, pausing to glee at Edith who rolls her eyes.

"I am not!"

"In my eyes, you are, Edith. Ok?"

"No, Tommy! Not 'ok'." She snaps in reply, letting out a laugh as she runs a hand through her hair. "God you infuriate me."

"And you, me." He replies sarcastically, dropping into the chair behind the desk.

"What do you want me to do, Tommy? Eh? What?" Tommy sighs, rubbing at his eyes as he drops his head into his hands, running them over his head in exasperation. "Why don't you do what you've been wanting to do for years?"

"Oh go on, Edith. What have I been wanting to do for years?" He shouts, lifting his head to glare at Edith who meets it with an equally hard stare.

"Kick me out." She states, throwing her arms in the air. "Go on Tommy! Do it. Fucking kick me out. Grow a fucking pair of balls-"

"Enough!" Polly shouts, pushing into the office. "That's enough. Edith. Sit down. Come on, sit. You shouldn't be getting riled up like this."

"He's a fucking-"

"Alright, enough. We get it. Ok? You can fucking hear you two back in Small Heath." Polly cuts in, laying a gentle hand on Edith's shoulder as she runs a hand over her face.

"I thought you'd changed." Edith mutters, not looking up at Tommy as he raises his eyebrows. "After Grace. I thought you'd changed."

"Edith..." Polly starts, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

"No Pol. Let her speak." Tommy cuts in this time, breathing heavily as Edith raises her head to meet his eye.

"I thought you'd changed." Edith repeats, calm seeming to have overcome her as she looks over at her brother. "But you've not. You're still the selfish, self centred, arrogant-"

"Edith." Polly snaps, seeing the anger rising in Edith's eyes as Tommy looks away, over her shoulder.

"Stubborn, son of a bitch-"

"Edith." Her aunt tries again, pushing her hand harder onto Edith's shoulder as she begins to rise from her chair.

"And do you know what, Tommy? I'm sick of it! I'm sick of you treating me like a fucking child, whilst telling me to grow up. How does that make sense, Thomas? Eh? How?"

"I gave you freedom...like you asked...like Michael said you needed-" Tommy retorts, rising from his chair to match her defensive stance.

"Don't blame this on Michael!" Edith shouts, spitting the words out across the room at Tommy.

"I gave you freedom, and look what fucking happened. Eh? Look at you!" He exclaims, throwing his hand out in front of him, motioning to Edith.

"Look at me? Look at you! Fucking look at yourself, Tom. Take a long hard look in the fucking mirror, and tell me you're happy with what you see." She shouts, letting out a bitter laugh as she turns away from her brother.

"Stop it, Edith." Polly hisses, reaching out to grab Edith's hand, which is quickly shaken free of her aunts.

"I'm sick, and tired of your bullshit!" Edith exclaims, turning to face Tommy one last time, glancing over at her aunt before turning towards the door again. "Don't follow me." She mutters as she storms out of the room. Finn glances up from the spot he had picked on the floor as Edith passes him, catching Polly's eye who gives him a small nod as he rises from the chair, jogging out of the house to follow Edith.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

In the week leading up to Christmas, Edith avoided Tommy like the plague, so much so, that if she saw him ahead of her, or heading in her direction, she would drop what she was doing, turn on her heel and leave in the opposite direction. She had taken to hiding if she knew he was around Watery Lane, often in the attic (despite the cobwebs, which she did run from frequently, into the waiting arms of Bonnie), and even on occasion in church, the last place she knew Tommy would come to look for her, not that he had any intention of chasing, in his eyes, his petulant little sister around Small Heath.

On one of these occasions, John had popped into Small Heath for the day, deciding to stop by the house on Watery Lane to check in on Edith, not having seen her since she had returned. He lets out a laugh as he shuts the front door behind him, watching as Edith bolts up the stairs.

"He's not here." He shouts towards the stairs with a laugh as he hangs his coat on the peg by the door, pausing at the foot of the stairs as he debates between following his sister, who may not be willing to talk to him, and heading home to Esme and the children.

"So what happened?" John asks, as he pops up at the top of the ladder leading to the attic, pulling himself up into the room and heading towards Edith who eyes him wearily over the top of her book.

"What are you doing here?" She asks, eyeing the tweed suit he was wearing. "Esme'll have a mare if she finds out you're back here."

"A brother can't come and check on his sister?" He asks, raising his eyebrows as Edith scoffs.

"You're sure he's not here?" She mutters, marking the page with her finger as she lowers her book to look over at John who rolls his eyes as he drops down beside her on the floor, letting out a scoff as he does so.

"He's not here." He reassures her, pulling a cigarette out of his pocket. "You do realise he knows you hide up here, right? You always have. You're not subtle, Edith."

"It's better than nothing." She grumbles, letting her head drop to John's shoulder as he hums in reply, the siblings falling into silence.

"So..?" John prompts, letting out an annoyed sound as Edith plucks the cigarette from between his fingers, raising it to her lips.

"He's angry with me. I'm angry with him. That's it." She states, letting a long train of smoke billow out in front of them. "You know how he gets."

"I do." He agrees with a nod, taking the cigarette back as Edith holds it out to him. "But I also know how you get." He holds up a finger, giving Edith a pointed look as she opens her mouth to protest. "I'm sure whatever it is, can be resolved with a good talk and a hug." Edith scoffs at John's suggestion, rolling her eyes as he narrows his at her.

"What's gotten into you?" She teases, bumping her shoulder against his as he shrugs.

"It's Christmas, Edith. Make peace with him, or you'll never forgive yourself." John says softly, cupping Edith's chin with his hand to force her to look at him, giving her a small smile before pressing a kiss to her forehead. She hums in agreement, falling into John's arms, her older brother wrapping her in a tight hug. Giving him one last tight squeeze, Edith pulls back and pats his cheek gently.

"Love you." She mumbles as he pushes himself to his feet, leaning down to kiss the top of her head, repeating her words back to her against her hair.

* * *

Upon leaving the attic nearly an hour later, Edith heads downstairs towards the kitchen, making straight for the kettle and jar of biscuits. She freezes at the sound of the betting shop doors opening behind her, knowing that the only brother around that evening who had keys to the shop, was Tommy. She glances over her shoulder at him as he pauses in the doorway of the shop, internally debating turning on his heel, pulling the doors shut behind him, too tired and frustrated from the day to get into another shouting match with his sister. However, a surprised smile graces his lips as instead of an angry look or shout, Edith raises her hand in a small wave, giving him a soft smile as the kettle boils over behind them.

"Tea?" She asks quietly, nodding as Tommy shakes his head once.

"I've just come to pick up some paperwork," he states, motioning with the hand hold a bundle of paper, back towards the betting shop. "Charlie left his book here the other day." He continues, nodding towards the living room, pulling the shop doors shut behind him.

"Oh." She replies softly, nodding again. "How is he?"

"Charlie?" Tommy clarifies, lifting his eyes to meet Edith's. "He's fine."

"Good. That's good." Edith says slowly, turning her back to Tommy as he heads into the next room, pouring herself a cup of tea. She jumps slightly as he appears in the doorway again, clearing his throat as he slides his cap onto his head.

"And you?" He asks, nodding towards Edith's stomach where she lays a gentle hand. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." She responds, lifting her tea cup to her lips.

"Good." Tommy clears his throat once more, moving off towards the front door where he pauses briefly to turn back to Edith who had been following him with her eyes. "Night." She mutters a 'good night' back as Tommy pulls open the door, stepping out onto the street, smiling to himself as out of the corner of his eye, he sees Edith turns to the window, pulling the curtain back slightly to watch him head down the lane to his car.

* * *

It's days later, as Edith and Finn are sat around the kitchen table that the post falls onto the rug by the door; Edith rises to collect it, frowning as she lifts one of the envelopes, holding it up for Finn to see.

"It's addressed to both of us." She states, confusion evident in her eyes as she turns it over, wondering who had sent a joint Christmas card to the two of them. Her breath catches in her throat as she opens the card, revealing a black hand. Wordlessly, she lifts the card again, turning to to show Finn the contents, letting out a shaky breath as he curses under his breath, immediately moving towards the phone in the hallway.

"Tommy." He greets their brother as he picks up the phone. "We've been served a black hand."

Following Tommy's insistence that they stay put, Edith sends word through Isiah to Bonnie, who had left the previous evening to help his family set up camp for Christmas, to meet them back at Watery Lane as soon as possible. By the time Christmas morning rolls around, the youngest Shelby siblings had barely slept, instead sitting together in silence as they await the arrival of their brothers and Bonnie.

"Ada?" Edith calls as she watches her sister, pale and shaking, enter the living room. "What's going on?"

"Michael's been shot," Ada breathes out, stopping in the doorway. Edith shoots up from her chair, Finn following quickly behind. "John-"

"What? What's wrong with John?" Edith asks frantically, beginning to tremble in fear. "Ada! What's wrong with John?"

"John's dead." Ada whispers, watching as the colour drains from Edith's face, her knees buckling as she shakes her head.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

"Oh my god," Edith breathes out, dropping to her knees, Finn's arms immediately circling her body, catching her before she could hit the floor. "Oh my god." She repeats, one had clenched, holding the fabric of Finn's shirt, the other on her chest. "No. No. No!" She sobs, letting out a scream as Finn pulls her tighter into his arms, her head tucked under his chin as he rocks her gently.

"Shh, you're ok." He soothes, running a hand over her back, too in shock to let his emotions show, knowing his little sister needed him to be strong for the both of them right now.

"I want Tommy!" She sobs, clenching and unclenching her fists in Finn's shirt as he continues to rock her.

"Shh, I know," Finn says softly, Ada nodding her head and heading back out the door. "Ada's gone to find him. She'll get him."

"He can't be dead Finn! He can't!" Edith's sobs build in intensity, growing near hysterical. "No, Finn! No! I need him!" The pair kneel on the floor in silence, the only sound in the room other than Edith's sobs is the constant ticking of the clock as Finn rocks her, tears slowly falling down his face as they await news from their older brothers.

———————————————————————

Later that day, Edith slowly makes her way out of the house, managing to find a blinder who was willing to drive her out to the mortuary. She had left Ada and Polly talking quietly in the living room, Finn asleep on the sofa, his head in Millie's lap as she had snuck out of the house, intent on finding her oldest brothers. Finn had made sure to send one of the Blinder boys out to meet Isiah, and find Bonnie and pass on the news, but no one knew exactly where the Golds were setting up camp, or how quickly Bonnie would be able to return. She gently pushes open the door to the mortuary, peering in to find Arthur and Tommy stood by John's lifeless body. The oldest Shelby's turn suddenly at the sound of the door being pushed open, Arthur making his way across the room to Edith before she even had chance to fully enter.

"Edith-" he starts, speeding up his pace as he sees her clock John's body, immediately breaking into a run in an attempt to get past Arthur who catches her in his arms as she tries to pass. He holds her to his chest as she leans over his arm, screaming for John, to be let go, clawing at him as she sobs. Tommy moves to join them as Edith collapses against Arthur, the two of them falling into a heap on the floor. He cups Edith's head in his hands, moving in front of her to block her view of their brother, pressing his lips to her forehead, letting them rest there as she winds her hand into his coat, tugging him closer.

"Take her home, Arthur." Tommy commands, helping Arthur pull Edith to her feet, gently leading her back towards the door.

The drive back to Watery Lane is silent, except for Edith's occasional sniffles, eyes glued to her older brother who keeps his own eyes trained on the road in front of him, aware nonetheless that she is watching him closely. When they arrive back at the house, Arthur tucks Edith under his arm, guiding her through the front door and into the living room, where Ada and Polly glance up at them in surprise. Arthur shakes his head lightly, allowing Edith to curl up beside him, her head in his chest as they settle on to the sofa.

Nearly and hour later, the two siblings glance up at the sound of the front door slamming shut, footsteps pounding against the floorboards as someone runs in the direction of the living room. Edith lets out a gasp as the door swings open to reveal Bonnie, who visibly relaxes at the sight of his girlfriend, safe in the arms of her older brother. She pushes out of Arthur's arms, flying across the room into the waiting arms of Bonnie, who gathers her, sobbing, tightly into his arms. Bonnie leads her gently backwards to the free arm chair, pulling her into his lap as she curls her body against his, sobbing into his chest.

"It's Christmas. This is supposed to be a happy time." Edith whispers tearfully to Bonnie who glances up as Tommy lays a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Go and get yourself a drink, Bonnie." He says softly, Bonnie eyeing him for a moment, silently warning Tommy of upsetting Edith further. Seeing no anger in his eyes, he nods his head and rises from the sofa, giving Edith one last kiss as he does.

"He's gone, Tom." Edith whispers as Tommy drops on to the seat beside her, running his hands over his face.

"I know." He mumbles, leaning back to rest against the back of the sofa.

"He didn't even know that I'm pregnant." She continues, voice choked with tears.

"He'll know." Tommy replies gently, raising his arm to wrap around her shoulder, pulling her close.

"Please don't be angry with me."

"Edith-"

"Please, Tommy. Please!" Edith begs, gripping the lapels of Tommy's jacket in her fists. "Please! Not anymore. We've lost our brother. I need you! I can't be worrying that I'm going to lose you too, and that the last thing we've said to each other is out of anger. Please."

"Ok. Alright, Edith. You're ok. We're ok." Tommy sighs, cupping the back of Edith's head and pulling her into his arms as she sobs into his chest.

———————————————————————

Edith blinks against the harsh light flooding in from the open curtains, despite being sure she had pulled them shut before she had slid into bed beside Bonnie the night before. Rubbing at her eyes, she flings her hand out to the side, tensing as she notes Bonnie's side of the bed is empty and cold, meaning he hadn't been lying there for sometime. Edith frowns to herself as she drops her legs off the side of the bed, running a hand through her hair as she gathers her thoughts, momentarily forgetting the events of the previous day, before pushing herself to stand, now noting the smell of food cooking downstairs. Smiling to herself, Edith slips on her dressing gown from the back of the door, shuffling downstairs, thinking she would find Bonnie cooking at the stove. She pauses in the doorway to the kitchen as she finds a woman stood, her back to Edith, stirring a pot at the stove. "Hello?" Edith calls, crossing her arms over her chest as she inches into the room. The woman turns, giving Edith a gentle smile as the young girl gasps, clutching her hand to her chest in shock. "Mama?"

"Hi baby," Mary coos, opening her arms for her daughter who hesitates for a moment before throwing herself at her mother, clinging tightly to her.

"What are you- Mama. What-"

"Just breathe, Edith." Her mother says gently, guiding Edith into a chair. "Have some tea. Relax. Everything's ok."

"Mama," Edith chokes out, Mary taking Edith's hand in hers. "John's gone. He's gone, Mama." She sobs, the events of the previous day finally catching up with her as Mary gathers her daughter back up into her arms.

"Oh, sweetheart. I know." Mary coos, running a hand over Edith's head. "I know, baby. But he's safe. He's with me now-"

"What?" Edith stutters, pulling away to look Mary in the eye as she sighs, meeting her daughter's eye with a sympathetic smile.

"Oh, Edie. Baby. You didn't think..." Mary trails off as Edith lets out another sob, dropping her head into her hands as reality catches up with her. "This is a dream, baby. But John's ok, everything's going to be ok."

"I don't understand." Edith sobs into her hands, mildly comforted by the gentle touch of her mother rubbing circles in her back. "I miss you!"

"I miss you too, baby." Mary whispers, pressing her lips to the top of Edith's head. "But I can't stay long. You need to go to your brothers. You need to be with them; stop fighting with Tommy. Don't let Arthur push you away. And Finn, you stick by him, alright? You keep each other safe."

"But...Mama! Please. A few more minutes!" Edith begs, head snapping up to grip Mary's hands in hers. "I have so much to tell you!" Mary nods solemnly, squeezing Edith's hands in hers.

"I've been watching over you...and I'm so proud. I'm so proud of the woman you're becoming Edith Mary." Edith smiles up at her mother, tears rolling steadily from her eyes.

"I'm having a baby." Edith whispers, her smile growing as Mary nods, pulling Edith's hands up to her lips and pressing a kiss there.

"And what a fantastic mother you'll be." She whispers, rising from the chair. "Go back to Bonnie, Edith. He's a good man, and he'll make a great father. Just like your brothers have. Look after our boys, won't you?" Edith nods as Mary heads towards the door, following her with her eyes the entire way. "Edith?" She calls as she pulls open the front door, Edith nodding, holding Mary's gaze despite the tears that were clouding her vision. "I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you too, Mama." Edith whispers as Mary leaves the kitchen, Edith beginning to rouse slowly from her dream and back to her room, tucked up under Bonnie's arm.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

**AN: This chapter takes place before and after John's funeral, but I decided not to write that scene into the story. If you do want to see that scene, I may write it into a one shot for the Shelby Sisters story. **

Edith pauses as she enters the hallway of the hospital floor she had been told Michael was on; she watches the nurses and doctors move around for a few minutes, jumping as a hand touches her arm gently.

"Sorry sweetheart, do you need some help?" A nurse asks her softly, a sympathetic smile gracing her lips as Edith reaches up to swipe away the single tear that had escaped her eye and was falling down her cheek.

"Um, yes. Please." She responds, clearing her throat before continuing. "I'm looking for Michael Gray. He's my cousin." The nurse nods, giving her another small smile as she begins to guide Edith down the hallway.

"He's not been feeling up to visitors, but I'll knock anyway." She replies, Edith nodding with a small smile of her own as they stop in front of a closed door. "Mr Gray?" The nurse calls, knocking as she pushes open the door, popping her head into the room. "Your cousin is here to see you."

"I don't want any visitors." Comes Michael's gruff reply, Edith's breath catching in her throat at the thought of being turned away by him. The young nurse turns to face Edith, shrugging her shoulders with a sad smile.

"Tell him it's Edith." She whispers in reply, wringing her hands as the nurse turns away again, relaying the message.

"Edith?" She hears Michael repeat, heart pounding at the sound of his voice calling out to her. Stepping aside, the nurse squeezes Edith's arm lightly as she passes to let her into the room, giving her a gentle warning of not staying too long, before heading back off down the hallway, leaving Edith hovering in the doorway. "Edie?" Michael calls again, bringing a fresh wave of tears to her eyes as she steps into the room, pushing the door shut behind her. She lets out a shaky laugh as Michael slowly pushes himself up to sit against the headboard, motioning for her to come into the room with a nod of his head.

"You look like shit." She jokes lightly, now lingering at the end of his bed, letting out a snort of laughter as he rolls his eyes at her.

"Thanks." He replies sarcastically. "What are you doing here, Edie?"

"I needed to see you." She whispers, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. "I needed to make sure you're ok."

"Come here." He says gently, holding his good arm out for Edith, who immediately moves towards him, dropping lightly onto the bed and tucking her head against his neck, allowing the tears to flow freely down her cheeks. Michael lifts his good arm again, cupping the back of Edith's head as he shushes her softly, tilting his head to press a kiss to her temple.

"I thought you were going to die too." She cries, leaning into Michael's hold as her sobs rack her body. "I can't lose you too."

"You're not going to." He whispers against her hair. "I'm not going anywhere."

———————————————————————

"Alright?" Michael greets Bonnie the following morning as he appears in the doorway to Michael's hospital room. Bonnie repeats the greeting, moving into the room to take a seat beside the bed.

"I can't believe they let her stay." Bonnie comments with a small laugh, resting his elbows on his knees, leaning forward towards Michael who scoffs.

"They wouldn't have been able to get her to leave, even if they tried. She faked sleep for at least an hour, and when a nurse came in during the night, she threatened to scream the place down if they forced her out." Michael replies with a laugh of his own, shaking his head at the memory of his cousin's actions.

"Sounds like our Edith." Bonnie states, reaching out to tuck her hair behind her ear gently.

"She hardly slept." Michael continues, nodding his head towards his cousin who was curled up at his side, barely still laying on the bed, close to falling off if hadn't been for Michael's good arm holding her on.

"She's not been sleeping much at all." Bonnie replies, continuing to run his fingers gently through Edith's hair. "God I hate that I have to wake her."

"She says she doesn't want to go to the funeral, but she needs to." Michael comments. "She doesn't mean it though, she wouldn't miss it for the world."

"I know," Bonnie says with a sigh, glancing up at the clock. "We need to get going." He says reluctantly, leaning forwards to press a kiss to Edith's cheek. "Love?" He calls gently, rubbing her cheek to try and wake her. "Edith, time to get up." Edith sighs as Bonnie presses another kiss to her forehead, turning and smiling at him sleepily, before remembering where she was, the smile falling as her eyes fill with tears.

"No." She whispers with a shake of her head. "Please Bonnie." Bonnie shuts his eyes, rubbing them as he thinks of how to respond.

"We don't have to go...but I really think you should, love."

"But then he's gone. Really gone."

"I know." Bonnie cups Edith's cheek with his hand as she lets out a choked sob, tears streaming down her face. "Come here." He kneels beside the bed, pulling Edith into his lap as she sobs in his arms.

———————————————————————

Edith takes a deep breath in an attempt to settle her nerves and her reeling mind from the shock of the events of the funeral that morning, as she knocks on Tommy's office door later that afternoon, pushing it open to stick her head into the room. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes. Come in." He replies, raising his hand to wave her into the room, noting how she visibly trembles as she steps closer to his desk.

"What's going on?" She asks quietly, shaking her head as Tommy silently motions for her to sit.

"Edith, with John gone..." he starts slowly, placing his hands in his pockets, trailing off as she shakes her head adamantly.

"No." She whispers, tears pooling in her eyes as Tommy reaches up to rub at his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Tommy."

"No, Edith. You need to listen." He states gently, moving around the desk to stand in front of her, holding a hand out for her to take. She shakes her head again, glancing down at his hand as she takes a step back.

"Tommy...I can't." Edith cries softly, clutching her hands to her chest as the tears begin to roll down her cheeks. "Please, Tommy. Please. I can't do what you're going to ask of me. I can't."

"With John gone," he repeats slowly, moving to sit on the edge of the desk. "You and Finn are going to need to step up in the company."

"No."

"Edith."

"No! Please!" She sobs, her head frantically shaking from side to side. "We've just said goodbye to our brother. Please, Tommy. Don't ask me to do this. I can't do this!"

"Edith! For once in your life, shut up and fucking listen!" Tommy booms, anger suddenly flashing in his eyes, dimming immediately as he notes how his statement and volume brings a fresh wave of tears to Edith's eyes, his little sister stumbling backwards at his words. "You and Finn will be equally taking over John's share of the business, until you're both old enough and have enough experience to take over your own part." He continues more gently, watching as Edith rings her hands, taking her lip between her teeth. He notes the change in her posture as she straightens suddenly, taking a deep breath as she swipes at her cheeks, appearing frustrated at the way the tears were rolling down her face.

"I'm not doing it." She states, voice full of hurt and anger.

"You don't have a choice."

"You think you can have everyone eating out of the palm of your fucking hand." Edith hisses, stepping forwards, her eyes locking with Tommy's. "Well guess what? Not everyone wants to conform to your fucking way of life! You can't control everything."

"Watch me."

"Oh yeah? And how has that worked out for you in the past, eh? Look at John. Look at how that fucking worked out. You choosing his life for him. He's dead! Because of you." Tommy's head snaps back as if she'd reached out and slapped him, both equally as shocked as each other at the words that had left Edith's mouth. She lets out a squeak of surprise, clasping her hand over her mouth as she slowly backs away from Tommy before bolting out of the room.

Still shaking from the angry conversation she had just held with her brother, Edith slips back into the warm living room, avoiding making eye contact with any of her family members as she sinks down on to the sofa beside Bonnie. He reaches his hand out, silently offering her comfort in the form of his upturned palm, squeezing her hand gently as she tucks her hand in his as she silently tunes in to the conversation going on around her. She glances around at the saddened faces of her siblings, her gaze finally landing on Polly who was sat alone in an arm chair, ranting to no one in particular.

"And he used your brother's bloody funeral as a-"

"Stop, talking about him!" Edith explodes suddenly, jumping up from the sofa, everyone falling into a stunned silence as they turn to face her. Bonnie rises slowly, reaching out to Edith as she lets out a frustrated laugh. "He's not even here and he's all we can fucking talk about!" She shouts, flinging her arm out in the direction of the door. "Tommy, this, Tommy that, Tommy, Tommy, Tommy." She yells, clapping her thumbs and fingers together in the air. "I'm so fucking sick of it! He's in our heads!" She continues, jabbing a finger to her temple, spurred on by the silence and shocked expressions from her family members. "And because of him, and this fucking company, our brother is dead! Dead. And we're all next!"

"Edith..." Ada starts, rising from her own chair, reaching her hands out towards her sister who falters, swaying against Bonnie's hold as she lets the sobs break free. Bonnie tightens his grip on his girlfriend as she collapses against him, shifting slightly to allow Ada to wrap her arms around her sister too. "I think Edith needs some space." She says quietly, turning to the rest of the family, Finn catching on quickly as he ushers everyone from the room, Bonnie and Ada silently guiding Edith back on to the sofa, once again sobbing in their arms.

———————————————————————

It's hours later, after a nap in one of the smaller drawing rooms of Tommy's house that she and Bonnie had occupied, that Edith shuffles towards her boyfriend, fear pooling in her stomach as she hovers by the sofa he was laid on. "Bon?"

"Yeah?" He replies softly, holding his hand out to Edith over the arm of the sofa, smiling as she slips her hand into his. His smile drops as he watches the tears pool in her eyes, leaning forward to pull her towards him, Edith dropping lightly into his lap as she whispers: "I'm bleeding."


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

Dropping to her knees beside Edith's bed with a sigh, Polly leans forwards, pressing her lips to Edith's forehead as her niece lets out a shuddering breath, reaching out to cling to her Aunt.

"If it's going to happen, it'll be in the next couple of days." Polly says gently as she leans back on her heels, rubbing her hand over the back of Edith's head. "Try and drink this tea, and get some rest. Ok?"

"It's not going to, ya know, sort it, right?" Edith asks quietly as she takes the tea cup from Polly who shakes her head.

"No, love. This is just tea. We'll let your body decide by itself what it wants to do."

"And if it decides to, ya know-" Edith chokes out a sob, Bonnie immediately dropping to his knees beside her, pulling her head to his chest. "There's nothing we can do?" She tearfully asks, glancing over at her Aunt who shakes her head again.

"I'm afraid not, sweetheart." She says gently, giving Edith's hand a squeeze as she sobs into Bonnie's chest, her whole body shaking. "Try and get some sleep." Polly continues, rising to her feet as Bonnie gives her a tearful, yet grateful smile, the older woman giving Bonnie's shoulder a squeeze as she leaves the room.

"Will you lie with me?" Edith whispers, shifting over as Bonnie nods, sliding into bed beside her. Edith immediately tucks her arms around his body again, her head resting on Bonnie's chest, content to lay in silence, listening to his heartbeat.

"You ok?" Bonnie asks groggily as Edith slips back into bed beside him in the early hours of the morning. "Anything?" Edith shakes her head, sliding herself across the bed and into his waiting arms. "That's a good sign, if there's no more, right?" Edith shrugs against his chest, burying her head in his neck, inhaling his scent. Bonnie sighs, pressing his lips to the crown of her head as he runs his hand along her back. "I love you, Edith."

"I love you, Bon." She whispers back, tightening her hold on him. "Please don't let me go."

"I'm not going anywhere." He promises, tilting her head up to press their lips together. "Promise."

———————————————————————

"Good morning." Ada greets Polly as she enters the dining room the following morning, take a seat opposite her niece.

"Morning." Polly repeats, giving Ada a soft smile as she fills the tea cup in front of her. "Mary's going to take Edith up some breakfast. She got some sleep last night so that's good."

"And she's ok?" Ada confirms, anxiety written across her face as she leans towards Polly who nods.

"I think they're both going to be ok. There was no more bleeding in the night. We'll keep an eye on her, but I'm hopeful that the baby is ok. A midwife is coming around to check on her later." Polly replies, giving Ada a reassuring smile as the older sister lets out a sigh of relief, dropping her head into her hands. "Your brother definitely didn't help." Polly mutters under her breath, lifting the newspaper beside her as Ada lets out a frustrated groan.

"I'm going to speak to him today. She needs us, Pol. Especially him."

"I agree." Polly states, raising her eyebrows as Ada rises from the table. "Good luck."

———————————————————————

Taking a deep breath as she hesitates outside Tommy's office, Ada raises her hand to knock against the door, pushing it open slowly at his affirmative call.

"Tommy?" She questions as she shuts the door behind herself, noting how Tommy hadn't even raised his head from his paperwork. "Tom." At his lack of response, Ada mutters a string of curse words under her breath, stepping closer to Tommy's desk as she sharpens her tone. "Thomas."

"What?" He grunts, finally lifting his head to look up at Ada who cocks her head to the side, throwing him a withering look.

"We need to talk."

"Hmm?" Tommy hums in response, raising his eyebrows.

"About Edith." She states, dropping into the chair opposite Tommy's desk.

"What trouble has she gotten herself into now?" He asks, exasperation evident in his tone.

"Tommy, for christ sake. Please. Will you listen to me?" Ada pleads, leaning forwards towards Tommy who drops his pen on to the table, leaning back in his chair as he raises his hands in surrender.

"I am."

"You upset her." Ada starts, frowning as Tommy cuts her off.

"I'm so-"

"No you're not. That's the thing, Thomas. You're not sorry. You're not thinking about her. You're not thinking about Edith. And Bonnie. And their baby." She emphasises, jabbing her finger against the desk as Tommy raises his eyebrows once more.

"I am-"

"You're not!" Ada exclaims, slamming her hand down on the desk. "What you're asking of her, it's too much! She's 18!"

"Yet she's not too young to have a baby." He protests stoically, intertwining his fingers over his stomach.

"Oh come on, Tom."

"No, Ada. You come on-"

"You're not being fair! Listen to her! She's heartbroken, and grieving. She needs her big brother to be supporting her. She needs you, Tommy!" Ada shouts, cutting Tommy off again as she rises to her feet, placing her palms on the table as she leans forward into his personal space. "She nearly lost her baby last night. Did you know that? Because of everything that's been going on. Because of what you said. Because she's stressed! And overwhelmed! And you're not fucking helping."

"Ada..."

"Shut up. I'm speaking." Ada snaps, jabbing her finger against Tommy chest as he rises to match her height. "Think, Tommy. Use your fucking head, but listen to your heart. She's our baby. And she needs us." Without a backwards glance, Ada stalks out of the room, slamming the door behind her as Tommy stares after her, speechless.

———————————————————————

"Knock knock." Finn calls playfully, rapping his knuckles against the door as he sticks his head into Edith's room. "Can I come in?"

"Of course." She replies with a small smile, patting the space on the bed beside her.

"Where's Bonnie?" Finn asks as he carefully lowers himself on to the bed beside his sister, immediately lifting his arm for her to curl up against him, her head resting on his chest, right above his heart.

"He's getting us some lunch. I'm on strict orders from Ada and Pol to stay in bed. Bon's waiting on me hand and foot." She jokes, letting her body relax against her brothers. Finn lets out a laugh as Edith smiles up at him, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Did Tommy speak to you too?"

"Yeah." He replies with a nod, body tensing as he senses Edith doing the same.

"What do you think?" She asks, peering up at him, eyes wide as she anticipates his response.

"I- Edith..." Finn croaks out, trailing off with a sigh as he looks away, focusing on the painting on the wall rather than his sister.

"You're going to do it." She whispers, more of a statement than a question, eyes still locked on Finn as he clenches his jaw.

"You're not?" He mutters in response, his eyes still fixed ahead.

"I haven't decided yet." Edith mumbles, dropping her head back onto Finn's chest, taking her lip between her teeth.

"Hmm..." He responds, nodding slowly. "Are you ok?" Finn reluctantly whispers, somewhat afraid of the answer, his chest loosening slightly as Edith nods.

"Mhmm."

"You sure?" He clarifies, peering down at Edith as she fiddles with her rings.

"Yes." She states softly, smiling up at him as he swallows hard.

"Ada told me...about the baby. About what happened."

"I figured she would. Pol says everything's fine now." Edith replies, Finn watching as she gives him a watery smile, trying to figure out if she was trying to reassure him, or herself.

"Definitely?" Finn questions, closing his eyes slowly as Edith shrugs.

"Hopefully." She says, resting a hand on her stomach gently. "The midwife seemed happy when I saw her yesterday. She heard the baby's heartbeat." Edith smiles as she rubs slow circles against her stomach, remembering the relief that had crossed Bonnie's face as she had let out a grateful sob at the midwife's statement. "I have to take it easy though."

"You need anything, you shout me." Finn tells her, gently curling his fingers under her chin to tilt her head up to look at him.

"Finn." Edith draws out, tilting her head to the side as she gives him a soft, grateful smile.

"Edith. Do you hear me? You need anything, anything at all, you shout me. Ok?" He repeats more firmly, taking her chin between his fingers now to force her to keep her eyes trained on his. "Yes?"

"Ok." Edith sighs, reaching up to cup Finn's cheek as she reads the panic in his expression and tone of voice. "Jeez, between you and Bonnie I'm going to be spoilt rotten." She jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Edith." Finn all but growls, narrowing his eyes at her joke.

"What?" She chokes out with a laugh, shaking her head at his serious facial expression.

"Promise me." He states, Edith softening as she notes the tears now welling in his eyes.

"Ok, yes. I promise." She whispers softly, reaching her arm around Finn's chest to hug her body close to his, smiling against his shirt as he presses a kiss to the top of her head.

"Good." He mumbles against her hairline. "I've got you, Edith. You're safe."


	31. Chapter31

**Chapter 31 **

When Bonnie leaves the gym late in the afternoon, he's surprised to find Edith stood outside waiting for him (not alone, of course, there were at least 3 blinders, that he could see, surrounding her). Smiling as she pushes off the wall, Edith wraps her arms around Bonnie's neck, pulling him in for a tight hug, which he immediately reciprocates, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Hello, love." He mumbles against her hair, pressing a lingering kiss to the top of her head. "Are you ok?" Edith nods in response, pulling back to tilt up on to her tiptoes, cupping his cheeks as she pulls him in for a kiss. "Tommy finally let you out of the house?" Rolling her eyes at his statement, Edith tucks her hand in Bonnie's, heading back down the lane.

"I thought we could walk home together." She replies, swinging their joined hands between their bodies. "And I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Is this something to do with what Tommy said to you the other day?" Bonnie enquires, nodding at Edith's hum of agreement.

"I'm thinking of doing it." She whispers, holding her breath until Bonnie responds, squeezing her hand in his.

"I can't tell you what to decide, Edie," he starts, looking over at Edith who was peering up at him, waiting for him to continue. "You need to do what feels right for you. In your heart." Edith nods, humming again as she tucks herself closer to Bonnie who winds an arm around her waist. "But if you decide to do this...to join the company officially...you need to be doing it for the right reasons. Not just because you feel obligated to fill John's spot. You have nothing to prove, Edith." Edith hums again, resting her head against Bonnie's shoulder as she contemplates his words. "Just know," he continues, pulling Edith to a stop in the doorway of their house, cupping her face in his hands. "That whatever you decide, I will back you 100%."

* * *

Taking a deep breath, Edith straightens her hat, stepping slowly into Charlie's yard, her eyes immediately searching for Bonnie, knowing that after leaving early this morning, he had been headed to Charlie's yard to meet with his father and Tommy. Across the way from Edith, Johnny Dogs was stood talking to Charlie about the food, pausing, cigarette mid way to his lips as his eyes land on Edith.

"Oh, no..." Johnny Dogs draws out, throwing his cigarette to the floor. "Oh, no no no."

"What?" Charlie asks, raising his hands as he follows Johnny's eyes.

"No, Edith. No." Johnny continues, starting towards the youngest Shelby. "No, Edith Mary. Tell me it's not true. Come on now, girl."

"Hello Johnny. Nice to see you too." Edith teases, wrapping Johnny in a tight embrace. "Merry Christmas."

"Tell me ya not." Johnny whispers, pointing to Edith stomach as she rolls her eyes, letting her hand rest on the small bump.

"I am." She confirms with a nod, turning her head away with a smirk as Johnny begins mumbling curses under his breath. "Johnny..." she calls, trying to gain his attention. "Johnny, stop. Johnny." She snaps out more forcefully, stopping the man mid curse. "I love him-"

"Edith."

"I love Bonnie Gold. With all my heart." She states, reaching out for his hand. "And I know how you feel about him and his father...I do. But I'm happy Johnny. Can you not be happy for me?"

"He's-"

"Enough, Johnny." Edith huffs, rolling her eyes. "Are you going to congratulate me, or am I going to walk away in a huff?" Ever since she was little, Edith had had a special place in Johnny's heart (and vice versa), the older man often being found around her brothers and Uncle; he was part of the reason Edith could ride and look after horses so well, taking her under his wing at times when she would follow her brother's (unbeknownst to them) down to Charlie yard, where he would scoop her up, away from their angry glares, often taking her for a ride out into the country to get her away from the mess of the Peaky Blinders.

"I only want what's best for you." He states, clasping his hand around her shoulder, Edith tilting her head with a smile in response. "I don't like 'em."

"I know you don't." She replies softly, pulling him in for a hug.

"Congratulations." He mumbles as she pulls away, rolling her eyes at his reluctance, stepping away from him to head towards the table in the middle of the yard, spinning on her heel at the last minute to face him again.

"Who told you anyway?" She calls over to him, walking backwards a few steps until he replies.

"I overheard your sister."

"Brilliant." She mutters, turning again to find a seat at the table.

Watching his sister cross the yard, Tommy pats Arthur on the shoulder as he heads in the direction Edith was moving, clearing his throat as she stops beside Ada, hand on the chair in front of her, ready to take a seat. Raising her eyebrows at her sister, Edith pauses for a moment, waiting for Tommy to speak before turning around.

"Edith," Tommy says, Ada giving him an encouraging smile as he meets Edith's eye. "Can we take a walk?" At Edith's nod, Tommy places his hand gently on the small of her back to lead her away from the table. "I wanted to talk to you." Edith nods again for him to continue, digging her hands into her pockets as she waits for him to carry on talking. "I wanted to apologise-" Holding his hand up to stop Edith as she opens her mouth to speak, Tommy pauses, clearing his throat again before continuing. "I want to keep you safe. You have to understand that, Edith. The decisions I make, they're for the good of this family."

"I know." Edith whispers softly, dropping her head to her chest as Tommy nods.

"The best way for me to do that, is to keep you close-"

"I'll do it." Edith mumbles, almost inaudibly as she cuts Tommy off gently. Leaning his head towards Edith, Tommy pulls out his tin of cigarette, lifting one to his lips, lighting it as he waits for her to take back her statement.

"What?"

"I'll do it." She repeats, a little bolder this time as she lifts her head to meet his eye. "I'll take my part in the company. I'll take a job with you. I'll do what needs to be done, but I can't promise that I'll always agree with what you say or do."

"I understand that." Tommy replies with a nod. "All I ask is that you listen to me. What I tell you, I say to keep you safe. You get that, don't you?"

"I do." Edith confirms, biting her lip. "I want to work with Micheal."

"With Micheal?" Tommy clarifies, tilting his head to the side as she nods, the pair coming to a stop.

"I'll help him with the books. Like I do with Arthur sometimes. I'll work in the offices, doing whatever you need. I'll go out and take meetings if that's what you need. But I will not hurt people."

"I would never ask you to do that, Edith." Tommy states gently, shaking his head. "But I need you to start carrying a gun. For-"

"Safety." Edith finishes for him, holding her hand out, Tommy smiling at how well she knew him, placing a small hand gun in the palm of her hand. "Fine. Do we have a deal?"

"We do." He replies, as she tucks the gun into the waistband of her skirt, placing his hand in her now empty outstretched palm and giving it a firm shake. "Welcome to the Shelby Company Limited, Edith." Rolling her eyes, Edith wraps her arms around Tommy's neck, pulling him in for a tight hug.

"You say that as if I haven't been working for you since I was 11." She teases as she pulls away, giving him a small smile. "You best go and find Johnny, check his not driving Uncle Charlie mad." She jokes, heading back towards the table as Tommy lets out a small laugh in response. "Oh and Tom?"

"Hmm?"

"I want my own office."

* * *

Pushing off the wall she had been leant against and falling into step beside Polly, Edith winds her arm through Ada, smiling over at her sister as they enter the hospital. Their walk through the hospital is silent, Polly leading the way to Michael's too where Tommy was already waiting for them.

"Where's Arthur?" He asks as the ladies enter, the youngest Shelby heading straight to her cousin, wrapping him in a tight hug before dropping into the empty seat beside him.

"Do I look like his fucking mother?" Polly spits out, placing her briefcase on one chair, settling into the empty one beside it.

"He wasn't at the shop," Edith replies, opening her bag to pull out a cigarette, leaning towards Michael, holding his lighter out to her, lighting the cigarette. "I knocked on his door before Isiah drove me over here, but he wasn't there either. Must have been at the factory."

"Right then, before we start this extraordinary general meeting, of the board of the Shelby Company Limited, I'd like to note the absence of the Deputy Vice President, who has not yet arrived. We will continue without his presence." Pausing for a moment as they all glance over the document Tommy had handed out, Tommy's clears his throat, pushing his hands into his pockets. "Item number one, the reinstatement of the Shelby Company Limited Company Treasurer." Pausing again, Tommy gives Polly time to read over the new terms and conditions, before passing a similar document over to Edith who takes it, leaning back in her chair to read over it. "Item number two, during the absence of the company accountant due to ill health, all responsibility for the keeping of company accounts pass to the temporary head of accounts, under the guidance of the head of acquisitions." Tommy nods his head towards Ada and Edith who reaches over, giving Michael's hand a quick squeeze in his lap as he hands the paperwork over to her.

"Welcome to the Company Edie." Ada whispers to her sister, raising her eyebrows at her sister who repeats the action.

"Thanks," she mumbles in reply, passing the signed documents back to Tommy and lifting her cigarette to her lips. "Just hope I don't regret it."


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32 **

**AN: Following some reviews I have had, I've started a new Edith story looking at her back story prior to this one, through one shots - it's called the Adventures of Edith Shelby! **

Edith hums as Bonnie wraps his arms around her from behind, smiling as he drops his head to her shoulder, nudging her dressing gown to the side with his nose to press a kiss to her shoulder as they sway gently. "Good morning." Edith greets him, laying her hands over his as he repeats her greeting. "You ready to fight?"

"Born ready." He states playfully, pressing a kiss to her neck as she lets out a laugh.

"And-" Cut off suddenly by the sound of a gunshot, Edith pushes out of Bonnie's arms, rushing out of the front door with Bonnie on her heels, gun in his hand. "What was that?" Edith yells to Tommy as he exits his house next door to hers, running into the street.

"Get back inside Edith!" Tommy commands, pointing towards the house as Bonnie grabs Edith's hand, pulling her backwards, out of the street. "Where did that come from?" He calls to the blinder on the street who points him towards Arthur's house. Edith lets out a frightened yelp, falling back against Bonnie with a hand pressed over her mouth as he winds an arm around her waist again, leading her back into the house. Shutting the door soundly behind them, Bonnie gently pushes Edith in the direction of the stairs, which she drops down on to as he moves to the kitchen window, pulling the curtain slightly to the side to watch for any activity on the lane.

"Tommy's coming back." Bonnie calls lightly, holding his hand out to pull Edith up from the step. Pulling the door open, Edith steps back out on to the street as Tommy approaches his house.

"He's ok." He reassures his sister quickly, watching sadly as she drops back against the door frame, eyes shut, hand resting over her stomach as she lets out a deep breath. "He fired the bullet."

"Good." She breathes out, leaning into Bonnie's touch as he winds an arm around her waist. "Fuck."

"Next time something like that happens, you don't run outside. Do you hear me Edith?" Tommy takes her by the tops of her arms, shaking her slightly as she looks up at him wide eyed. "Edith. Do you understand?"

"Tommy, I-"

"No." He snaps, cupping her cheeks in his hands. "No. I need you to listen. That's what you promised me. If you're going to be part of this, I need to know you'll do as I say." Nodding for him to continue, Edith relaxes against his touch, hearing the fear behind his words. "If that happens again, you stay inside, you lock the doors, and you get down. You wait for me. I can't lose another sibling."

"Ok." She whispers, nodding again. "Sorry." Pulling her in for a tight hug, Tommy kisses Edith's temple before pushing her back towards her house.

"Go on," he tells her, more gently this time, watching Edith intertwine her fingers with Bonnie's leading him back into the house. Once the door had shut behind them, and he had registered the tell tale sound of the lock turning Tommy drops forward to rest his hands on his knees, catching his breath before straightening again, running a hand over his face. Upon reentering his own house, he drops down at the kitchen table, dropping his head into his hands closing his eyes. All those years ago, when his father had walked out, Mary Shelby had sat her two oldest sons down, asking them to step up (as they had been for years already) and act as father figures for their younger siblings, the two boys readily agreeing to take on this role. Tommy had held that promise in his heart since that day, and even more so since the death of his mother, yet he had just lost his brother and couldn't imagine repeating this again, especially so soon after John's death. This vendetta needed to end, and he needed to keep his siblings safe.

* * *

"Hello Mrs Carlton." Edith greets May as she appears from beneath the cover of the boat, the older woman casting a confused glance over to the youngest Shelby as Charlie helps her out of the boat.

"Hello Miss Shelby," May replies, approaching Edith who gives her a warm smile.

"How was your journey?" Edith enquires, turning on her heel to begin her walk away from the boat, May glancing around again before following Edith along the path.

"Pleasant enough. Although I hope your brother's instance on me taking the boat rather than a cab from the station was not for his own amusement." May states as Edith lets out a chuckle, shaking her head as May falls into step beside her. "Where is your brother? I thought I was meeting with him."

"Something came up." Edith replies kindly, turning her head to look over at May. "He asked if I could meet with you instead. We're going to my office, I hope that's ok? Isiah here will drive us." May shrugs in response as they stop beside the car, nodding a thanks to Isiah as he holds her door open for her.

Placing a roll of bills down on the table in front of May, Edith steps back, lighting a cigarette as she leans against the desk. "Shoeing, stabling, feed, two hours a day in the gallops." She states, tucking each statement off on her fingers. "Have you thought of a name?"

"Yes. Dangerous."

"Hmm..." Edith hums, blowing out a stream of smoke. "Why Dangerous?"

"A horse called Dangerous won the Epsom Derby in 1833, so I stole the name. Thought your brother would approve." May pauses, giving Edith a smile as the young girl ducks her head with a laugh. "You should visit her. You're always welcome to stay, Edith."

"Thank you, but...that won't be possible. Not for a while at least."

"And why's that?"

"Business." Edith states simply, raising her head to look over at May. "Tommy won't let me leave Small Heath."

"Because of your brother?" May clarifies, watching Edith as she stiffens, jaw clenched as she tries not to let her facade crack. "The one that died?" Twitching her jaw to the side, Edith turns her head away, squeezing her nails into the palm of her empty hand as she takes a long drag of her cigarette, stubbing it out in the ashtray beside her before she turns her head again. "I'm sorry for your loss, Edith."

"So, how's our beauty getting on with you?" Edith asks, quickly changing the subject back to the horse as she drops lightly into the chair beside May, who nods once in understanding.

"Your horse is the fastest filly I've ever ridden. These are her registration papers, ready for your brother's signature. Or, yours I presume?" May replies, sliding the papers along the desk to Edith who nods, fishing a pen out of the pot beside her, quickly signing her name.

"I'm sorry that my brother wasn't around to see you," Edith says as she glances over the document, glancing up at May as she hums in response. "Seems a pity that you've come all this way just for a signature." Humming again, May glances around the office taking in the decor.

"This is a nice room." She comments, rising to look at the bookcase, lifting the figurine of a horse from the side.

"Thank you." Edith replies, rising from her seat, reaching for the paperwork to hand back to May. "Here. All completed and signed." Passing the folder back to May, Edith steps back, clasping her hands in front of her. "Did you bring an overnight bag?"

"An overnight bag?" May repeats with a frown as she shakes her head. "No. Why?"

"Just before you arrived, the train drivers all went on strike. A wildcat strike."

"It wasn't in the papers."

"Hence the term 'wildcat'." Edith teases lightly. "Tommy's booked you a suite at the Midland."

"He's booked me a suite..." May trails off, Edith nodding in reply.

"And he said he'd meet you at 4 o'clock." May sighs, turning away from Edith. "He wants your opinion."

"My opinion on..." May prompts, meeting Edith's eye again as the young girl smiles at her.

"I wouldn't know." She replies honestly, heading for the door. "I'll see you out."

* * *

Thanking Isiah, Edith steps out of the car, pausing to wait for Millie to round the car, falling into step beside her best friend as they head towards the stairs of the apartment block.

"Fuck." Edith mutters, pushing open the door to Finn's new apartment, pausing in the door way. "Welcome home, Mils." She teases her friend who scrunches up her nose as she appears behind Edith, her face softening as her eyes meets Finn's.

"I need to be invited yet." Millie jokes in reply, nudging her shoulder against Edith's as Finn lets out a choked laugh, shaking his head.

"Come on, Mil. You know you're invited. This is ours now." He assures her, spreading his arms out as she gives him a soft smile, glancing over at Edith who throws her a wink. "Who brought you here?" Finn asks, holding his hand out to Millie who steps past Edith, walking into his arms.

"Isiah and Bobby." Edith replies, stepping into the flat, kicking the glass and china out of the way as she looks around. "Jesus Christ, Finn."

"We can fix it up." He states, Millie turning in his arms to look around as well. "Change it up a bit." Edith hums in reply, eyes glued to her brother as he and Millie continue flicking their eyes around the kitchen. "Hey Mil, why don't you go and see what the rooms are like?" She suggests, giving her friend a subtle nod towards her brother, an unspoken message that she wanted to speak to him alone. Millie nods, leaning up on her toes to press a lingering kiss to Finn's cheek, heading off through the door to the left. "Finn." Edith whispers softly as Millie shuts the door behind her, Edith sensing her brother's unease. "Tell me what's upset you."

"I'm not John." Finn whispers, his voice barely audible, Edith having to lean in to hear him properly. "If they had walked right past me today, while I was holding that gun...I couldn't have done it, Edie. It's not in me. It's not me." Edith lets out a sympathetic whimper as Finn lifts his eye to look at Edith who steps forwards, reaching up to cup the back of his head with her hand, pulling him in for a hug.

"God, Finn," she breathes out, rubbing her hands across his shoulders as he holds her tightly. "You don't need to be. You're Finn." Pulling back, she cups his cheeks with her hands, forcing him to meet her eye. "You're Finn fucking Shelby." She whispers, squeezing his cheeks lightly as he gives her a small smile. "The most caring, loving, kind hearted man I've ever met."

"Even more than Bonnie?" Finn teases, Edith rolling her eyes in response.

"On par with Bonnie." She jokes in reply, the pair of them letting out a small laugh in reply. "But Finn, don't compare yourself to them-"

"But I'm a Peaky fucking blinder, Edith-"

"You're not Arthur. You're not Tommy or John. Hell, you're not Michael either. You're Finn." She emphasises, stepping back slightly. "You're Finn, and you're your own person. Make your own story. You don't have to be like them. Don't you get it? Carve your own path in this company. Hmm?" Nodding in response, Finn pulls his hat from his head, running his hand over his hair, glancing over as the door opens again, a smiling Millie stepping back into the room.

"It's nice." She comments, tucking his arm through Finn's.

"So you're moving in?" Edith clarifies, smiling as Millie peers up at Finn who nods, pressing his lips to hers. "Then let's get to work!" She exclaims, clapping her hands together.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

Running down watery lane, Tommy doesn't stop for breath until he reaches number 6, throwing the door open and letting it slam against the wall. The gun fight he had just been in with Changretta had left him rattled, his last words echoing through Tommy's mind: "Ah, but what you don't realise is, the moment the police show up, word will get back to my men, who are waiting outside your little sister's house right now. That's right, young Edith. With the baby on the way, correct? What a shame that will be..."

"Edith!" He yells, pushing open doors as he moves through the house. "Edith!"

"I'm here!" Edith shouts in response, appearing at the top of the stairs, clean washing in her hands as she looks down at Tommy at the bottom of the stairs, confusion evident in her face. "I'm here." She repeats, dropping the washing as Tommy moves up the stairs within seconds, gathering her into his arms. "I'm ok."

"He told me-" Tommy doubles over, hands on his knees as he struggles to catch his breath, Edith laying her hand gently on his back, concern written all over her face. "He said he had men here. That they would hurt you-"

"There's no one here but me, Tom. I promise. I'm ok. I'm safe." She reassures him, watching as he cups his head in his hands dropping to his knees. "What the fuck happened?"

"Daddy?" Charlie calls, sticking his head out from around the door of the room his aunt had pushed him into, terrified of her brother's yells, thinking something was wrong.

"Charlie." Tommy breathes out, holding his arms out towards the young boy who immediately steps into them. "My boy."

"We're ok, Tom." Edith whispers again, dropping to her knees beside him, wrapping her arms around the two of them. "Come on, it looks like you need a strong drink." Wrapping her hand around Tommy's arm, she tugs on it, her brother rising to his feet, Charlie still in his arms as he follows Edith down the stairs. Once they enter the living room, Tommy gently lowers Charlie to the ground, the little boy immediately moving to play with the toys he had left there earlier, his father dropping wearily into the arm chair beside him. Studying her brother for a moment, Edith frowns as he pulls his tie off, dropping it onto the side, eyes fixed on the window ahead of him. She clears her throat to gain his attention, giving him a soft smile as he lifts his eyes to meet hers, silently asking him if he was ok. At his lack of response, instead dropping his eyes again, Edith makes her way over to the side table where she pours him a generous helping of whiskey. She sighs as she turns back to him, finding him frozen, his lighter in his hand, cigarette hanging from his lips. Gently pushing the glass into his free hand, she plucks the lighter from between his fingers, lifting it to light the cigarette. "What happened?" She whispers softly, dropping to her knees beside him as he blows out a stream of smoke.

"I got 3." He whispers in reply. "One point blank." With a sharp intake of breath, Edith reaches up to cover his hand with her own, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"And he was there?" She asks, shutting her eyes for a moment as Tommy nods in response. "What are you going to tell Arthur?"

"The truth."

* * *

"Edith." Tommy calls as she pushes her chair back, moving to rise from the table, everyone else rising too as the meeting comes to an end. She pauses, glancing up at Tommy, watching as the rest of the family leave the room. "I need you to speak to Bonnie."

"About?" She prompts, leaning towards him.

"About Michael." Tommy continues, pushing the door shut as Edith narrows her eyes in confusion. "I need him to take Michael away for a while-"

"Tom-"

"He's number two-"

"He'll hate that!" Edith interrupts, rising quickly from the table and stepping towards her brother.

"It doesn't matter. Ok? It's only for a short while, and then he'll be back." Tommy states, shifting Charlie in his arms.

"And Bonnie will be with him?" Edith clarifies, moving to lean against the cabinet, arms crossed over her chest.

"Yes."

"And what about me?"

"I need you here." He replies, meeting Edith's eyes, his sister closing her own briefly, taking a deep breath.

"Are you serious?" At Tommy's nod, Edith reaches up to run her hands over her face. "Tommy, I'm pregnant! I need Bonnie here. I need him alive!"

"Edith."

"I'll talk to Bonnie." She states bitterly, noting the steely look in her brother's eyes, knowing as she turns away that his mind would not be changed. "But they won't be happy with it." She tells him, brushing past him, back into the house. "Neither of them."

"No." Bonnie states, pushing up from the sofa. "No fucking way!"

"Bon..." Edith sighs, dropping her head into her hand, her elbow resting on the arm of the sofa. She'd had a long day, from looking after Charlie since he had been dropped off early that morning, to Tommy's gun fight and the family meeting that followed. She had managed to wait until after dinner to approach Bonnie on the subject of taking Michael away, but she knew he was bound to take it badly; she owed it to Tommy and Michael to at least try anyway.

"The fucking mafia are after your family Edith. They're after you! You're on their hit list. You're pregnant with my baby, and your brother wants to send me away and leave you here by yourself?" Bonnie shouts in reply, pointing his hand in her direction to emphasise each statement.

"I won't be by myself." She reassures him, rising to follow him across the room. "Ada will be here. And Pol. Arthur's on one side, Tommy the other. Finn just over the way. There's blinders everywhere. You've seen them. Johnny Dogs and Isiah are always around...Bonnie..." she tries again, reaching out to grab his arm as he goes to move away from her again. "Bon, please!"

"It's like you want me to leave!" He exclaims, shaking his hand free of hers and she steps back, eyes wide in shock.

"Bonnie." She whispers, shaking her head. "Where's this coming from?"

"Why aren't you fighting for me to stay? Huh?" He asks, stepping towards her. "You seem like you're happy for me to be gone."

"That's not how it is!" She exclaims, throwing her hands out to her sides. "Bonnie! Of course I don't want you gone! I need you here with me! But for that to happen, I need you to be safe. And not only that, I need Michael to be safe, and if the only way to guarantee that is for you to take him away for a few days, that's what I need you to do." Bonnie sighs, running a hand over his face glancing up as a figure appears in the doorway to the living room.

"Tommy needs you Bonnie." Finn states, nodding towards the betting shop. Glancing over at his sister, Finn frowns as she lets out a frustrated groan, dropping back on to the sofa with her head in her hands.

"We're not finished with this, Bonnie." She calls as Bonnie steps past her to follow Finn, faltering to look back at her for a second before heading out of the room.

* * *

The silence that follows their argument into the next morning leaves Edith on edge, glancing over at Bonnie every so often on the drive out of Small Heath, trying, and failing to gain his attention. When they finally arrive at their destination, in pretty much the middle of no where, Edith steps out of the car just behind Bonnie, staring at his turned back before shifting her attention to Michael who was hesitating at the edge of his seat. "No. No fucking way."

"Come on. It's just for a few days." She murmurs gently, reaching out a hand to help him out of the car. Rolling her eyes as he steps out independently, ignoring her hand, she moves to lean against the side of the car.

"You've never eaten hedgehog, Michael?" Aberama calls over to them, Edith rolling her eyes at his comment, the other men behind them letting out laughs.

"I'm getting back in this car." He states, moving to turn away, Edith laying a hand on his arm to stop him.

"Michael, you're number two on Luca Changretta's hit list." Polly tells him, Michael cutting his eyes to Edith who meets his eyes with a shrug.

"Yes, and Edith is number four. So why isn't she coming too?"

"Your cousin wants her here." Polly replies, narrowing her eyes and turning on her heel as Bonnie scoffs, stuffing his hands in his pockets and turning away.

"Bon-" Edith calls warningly, tilting her head to the side, silently pleading with him with her eyes to meet her gaze, to forgive her, to understand why this had to happen. At his lack of response, both verbally or with his facial expression, Edith sighs, turning back to Michael.

"Don't forget to take your medicine." She says, pulling the bottles of pills out of her bag.

"I'll take them." Bonnie states, taking them from her hands, Edith watching him, frozen as he pockets the bottles. The only words that had been uttered towards her since their argument, and Edith heard no love behind them, not like usual.

"The healers up there will heal you much quicker." Aberama states, approaching the small group again.

"Fucking witches. The lot of them."

"Michael." Edith scolds, narrowing her eyes at him. "Have some respect. The Palmers and Boswell's have agreed to welcome you on account of our blood. Don't be rude. Take their help. God knows you bloody need it."

"Say goodbye to your girl." Aberama calls over his shoulder as he moves away again, Bonnie meeting Edith's eyes slowly as she gives him a small, nervous smile. Stepping forward, Bonnie grips the tops of Edith's arms lightly, pressing a kiss to her forehead, pausing momentarily before stepping back again, Edith sucking in a shocked breath as he turns away.

"Be careful." He calls back over his shoulder as she brings her hand up to rest on her chest, looking over at her Aunt who frowns, tucking an arm around her niece's shoulders.

"He'll come around." She whispers in her ear, gently turning Edith back towards the car, letting her niece step in first, shutting the door behind her.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34 **

Pushing her way through the crowd, Edith doesn't falter as she approaches the blinders guarding the entrance to the dimly lit hallway, brushing past them in her mission to get to her destination. At the tell tale sound of his sister's footsteps marching down the hallway towards him, Tommy steps out of the room and into the hallway as Edith approaches.

"Stop." Tommy states, placing a hand on Edith's shoulder as she appears in front of him in the doorway to the room Bonnie was prepping for the fight in. "He doesn't need any distractions."

"Fuck off Tom." She spits, pushing past him into the room. "Out." She commands to the Peaky Blinder standing guard inside the room. With a hard look at the youngest Shelby, the blinder nods once, stepping out of the room, hovering in the hallway, just outside the door. "And you." Edith states, turning to Aberama who cocks an eyebrow at her, observing her steely expression before smirking at her, slowly pushing off the wall and leaving the room. Without a word to Bonnie, who was stood watching her every move, Edith turns on her heel, slamming the door shut behind Aberama, pausing for a moment with her hand on the wooden frame before spinning to face Bonnie again. Stepping in his direction, Edith stops in front of Bonnie, barely an inch of space between them as she peers up at him, reaching up to push on his shoulders making him drop back on to the bench behind him. Bonnie gulps visibly as she lifts the hem of her dress, stepping forward so that his legs were between hers as she drops down to straddle his lap. "I thought I'd come and show you what you've been missing." She tells him, running a finger slowly along his jaw, dropping her head to press slow, lingering kisses along the other side of his chin.

"Edith..." he breathes out warningly, winding an arm around her waist nonetheless to pull her closer to him so their chests were flush against each other's.

"Shush." She commands, lifting her finger and pressing it against his lips to silence him. "I'm doing the talking." Pulling back to look him in the eye, Edith cups Bonnie's cheeks, heart racing as he gently curls his hands around her hips. "I hated you being away." She whispers, reaching up to trace the outside of Bonnie's ear as his eyes flutter shut. "But you were an idiot." Bonnie's eyes snap open again to meet Edith's as she pauses. "You were a fucking idiot, to think that I had a fucking choice in the matter." She chokes out, cupping his cheek again to force him to look at her. "I did fight for you Bonnie. But I had no choice, and you, of all people, should have known that." Pausing again as Bonnie nods, Edith takes her lip between her teeth. "It was torture Bon," she whispers, tears pooling in her eyes. "To not only have you gone, but to not have spoken to you. To have you ignore me. Cut me out. I didn't deserve that."

"You're right," Bonnie says softly, pulling her impossibly closer. "I was an idiot, and you didn't deserve that." Taking a deep breath, he pulls Edith's hands from his face, taking them in his and holding them to his chest. "I realised that the minute I left the room with Finn. But I was too stubborn and proud to admit it, and I didn't know what to say-"

"You could have-"

"I thought you wouldn't want to hear it. You were so angry with me, especially that evening. And then the next morning we left, and I could see the hurt in your eyes, and I didn't know how to fix it. It was torture for me too, Edith." Bonnie states, cutting her off. "I made a mistake, I was scared, and now I'm asking for your forgiveness." Shaking her head, Edith drops her forehead to rest against Bonnie's smiling as his hand moves to rest against the swell of her stomach gently. Tilting her head, Edith lets her lips brush over Bonnie's as she whispers her reply: "You're forgiven." Pulling her head to his gently, Bonnie crashes his lips into hers, the pair of them relaxing at the other's touch as Edith wraps her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. Sliding his hand slowly along Edith's thigh, Bonnie pulls back, moving his lips to her neck, sucking a love bite into the soft skin under her ear as Edith sighs, collapsing into his embrace. "You look beautiful tonight, Edith." He whispers, bringing his lips up to cover her ear, tightening his hold on her as she shivers, running his hand along her side, covered in a simple emerald green beaded dress, her natural curls carefully styled and falling down her back, in a style that was longer than fashionable for the time, but so completely 'Edith', not caring what others would think.

"You should have seen the struggle to get this thing on!" She jokes, pressing kisses of her own against his neck. "I've clearly grown since I bought this dress." Humming in response, Bonnie pulls away from Edith with a soft smile, placing his hand on her stomach again, now visibly showing.

"That's our baby in there." He whispers as she runs her hands down the back of his head, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

"Yeah, that's already causing it's mama wardrobe troubles." She teases, tugging his head back up to hers. "I think we need to make up for lost time tonight." She whispers, nudging his nose with hers as Bonnie's eyes widen, nodding slowly. "You'd better win, Mr Gold." She breathes out, her lips pressed lightly against his again. "There's a special prize waiting for you if you do." Letting out a small chuckle, Bonnie winks at Edith as he puckers his lips, capturing her lips in soft kisses.

"Well I'll just have to win then, won't I?" Edith laughs in reply, pulling him in for another deep kiss, groaning as a knock sounds against the door.

"Bonnie." Aberama calls from outside the room.

"You should go," Bonnie says softly, Edith pulling a face at his suggestion. "I need you ring side, remember? I need my girl out there. But that won't happen if you get stuck in here." Sighing, Edith nods, pressing one last kiss to his lips as she rises from his lap, straightening her dress as she does. Reaches the door, Edith turns to face Bonnie again, pulling the door open as she does so, throwing him a wink.

"I'll see you out there Mr Welterweight." She calls, blowing him an air kiss that he pretends to catch. "Remember, you've got a prize waiting for you if you win." Bonnie chuckles under his breath again as she turns on her heel, his breath catches in his throat as she leaves the room, swaying her hips as she goes, strutting back down the hallway to the main room.

Nodding to the boys at the end of the corridor, Isiah falls into step just behind Edith, escorting her to the front row where Linda, Lizzie and Polly were sat, the three women glancing up from the conversation as Edith appears at the end of their row.

"Room for one more?" She asks with a smile, Linda patting the seat beside her in response.

"You nervous?" Lizzie asks as Edith settles in, pulling a tin of cigarettes out of her bag. Shrugging as she lights the cigarette, she passes the tin down the row, offering one to the other women.

"No more than usual." Edith replies, blowing out a stream of smoke, glancing around.

"You're lying." Polly states around her cigarette, throwing a side glance at Edith who lets out a tight laugh.

"I can barely fucking breathe Pol." She whispers, giving Lizzie a small smile as she reaches across Linda to squeeze her hand, visibly shaking in her lap. Whispering a prayer in Romani under her breath, Edith's eyes follow Bonnie as he passes their row, entering the ring. Turning to face her, Bonnie throws her a kiss, Edith responding with an obviously fake, wide smile, blowing him another kiss in return. Slipping into the seat beside her, Ada wraps her arm around Edith, pressing a kiss to her temple.

"All sorted?" She whispers, knowing the troubles Edith and Bonnie has gone through, smirking as Edith turns to her with a sly smile.

"All sorted." Edith repeats, leaning back in her chair as the fight begins. Holding her breath, Edith tucks her hand in Ada's squeezing tightly while Goliath throws punches at Bonnie, some landing on his face.

"I can't fucking watch this." Edith mutters under her breath, dropping her head into her hands. Ada rubs her hand across Edith's shoulder blades, the younger Shelby continuing to mutter swear words in Romani to herself. As round one ends, Edith makes eye contact with Bonnie who nods at her, trying to reassure her that all was well, Edith shaking her head once. The bell rings, signalling the beginning of round two, Edith glancing up as Lizzie rises from her seat, heading towards the end of the row.

"Bathroom." She shouts to Edith as she passes her, Edith reaching up to take her hand, following the older woman through the row.

"Tell me this fight is fucking rigged." Ada states as she pushes into the bathroom, followed by Polly. "Pol? Edith?"

"I've not got a fucking clue." Edith breathes out, a freshly lit cigarette in her hand. "I can't stand it."

"You need to cut back on these." Ada comments, plucking the cigarette from between Edith's fingers, hopping onto the side beside her sister.

"Fuck off." Edith snaps, snatching the burning stick back and placing it between her lips. "I'm too bloody stressed."

"What's this about then, Pol?" Ada continues, opening her clutch to pull out her lipstick. "You said you had something you needed to tell us." Edith glances between the three older women.

"Not me. Lizzie." Polly replies, turning to face Lizzie who narrows her eyes at her.

"I'm up the duff." She states bluntly, Edith letting out a cough as she chokes on her intake of smoke. "And it's Tommy's."

"Shut up." She whispers, hopping down off the side to move towards Lizzie. "How far along?"

"If I were going to London I'd be in Coventry."

"And are you continuing past Coventry?" Ada cuts in, taking a swig of the gin Polly had passed her.

"All the way to fucking Piccadilly Circus." Letting out an excited shriek, Edith throws her arms around Lizzie, congratulating her as she does.

"Oh, Lizzie! This is the best news I've heard in ages!"

"Do you know what she's having?" Ada asks Polly, moving to congratulate Lizzie too who accepts the hug with a wide smile, shaking her head. "Well go on then Pol!" Stepping forwards, Polly cups Lizzie's breast gently, smiling up at her.

"A girl." She states, stepping back slightly. "Call her Ruby. Ruby Shelby. She'll be a star in a Hollywood movie." Lizzie giggles as Ada hugs her again, pulling back to eye up her younger sister.

"And our Edith?" She asks, reaching out to take Edith's hand in hers. "I think Edie needs some more good news." Edith hesitates, meeting her a Aunt's eye as she steps towards her.

"I don't know, Pol..." she states reluctantly, tilting her head to the side.

"Go on, Edith!" Lizzie encourages her, nudging her shoulder against Edith's. The youngest Shelby sighs, giving Polly a small smile and a nod, her Aunt and sister glancing excitedly at each other, Polly reaching her hand out to cup Edith breast.

"Make a guess." Polly whispers, smiling up at Edith who glances down, resting her hand on her stomach.

"A boy." She breathes out, tears welling in her eyes. "A baby boy that's just like our John." Polly nods, reaching up to cup Edith's cheek, wiping away the single falling tear.

"Edith," she says softly, rubbing her thumb across her her cheekbone. "You're having a boy." Letting out a choked laugh, Ada moves forwards, pulling Edith into her arms, her little sister clinging to her as she lets out a soft laugh of her own. Breaking apart, the sisters turn to the door as it opens revealing Linda who makes her way straight over to the sink, pulling a blue vial of snow out of her bag. Raising her eyebrows at Polly, Edith leans back against the sink, taking the gin bottle from Ada and taking a sip. Coughing at the taste, Edith wrinkles her nose, passing the bottle wordlessly back to Ada, the pair of them watching the conversation between the three older women.

"I'm going back out." Edith states, pushing off the side, reaching out to squeeze Ada's hand as she passes.

"I'll see you out there." Ada replies with a smile, turning away again to pass the bottle back to Lizzie.

Pushing her way back through the crowd of rowdy men, Edith bypasses the row she had claimed with the other ladies, instead heading in the direction of her older brothers across the ring. Neither man looks up from the fight as she approaches, Edith frowning as Arthur rises from his seat, moving away from the ring. Picking up her pace, Edith follows Arthur, just out of sight of Tommy, getting caught up for a moment in a crowd of men. Finally breaking free of the group, Edith shakes her head in annoyance, searching around quickly for her brother, and failing to find him, heading down the corridor ahead of her, hoping to find him that way. She slows as the noise of the race decreases, keeping her hand clutched around her bag, listening out for any noises.

"Arthur?" She calls, continuing down the hallway. At the sound of a gun going off just metres ahead of her, Edith stills momentarily, heart pounding before she picks up the pace, pulling her gun from her bag. Slowing again as she reaches a corner, Edith gathers her nerve for a moment before slowly rounding into the next, smaller room. Heart pounding, she lets her eyes adjust to the darkness of the room, letting out a frightened yelp as a figure lunges forwards, catching her by surprise and grabbing her roughly. Fighting to push the large man off her, Edith fails to hear her brother's footsteps pounding down the hallway towards her, having been alerted by the gunshot. Ears ringing, Edith drops to the floor with a deep breath, finally coming around to the fact that Tommy had shot the man who had moments ago had her pressed up against a wall. With her eyes lowered, Edith lets them sweep over the room, a shocked scream leaving her throat as she spies her oldest brother's lifeless body just ahead of her.

"Arthur!" She sobs, crawling across the room to gather him into her arms, Tommy reaching out to grab her around the waist, gently pulling her off of Arthur and pushing her away, dropping to his knees beside their brother, Edith sobbing noisily beside him. Glancing up as Polly appears in the doorway, Tommy abruptly rises, hooking his hands under Edith's arms, lifting her to her feet and pushing her into their aunt's arms, the older woman standing still in shock as Tommy pushes the two of them from the room. Whispering in Polly's ear, Tommy presses a lingering kiss to Edith's temple, cupping her head in his hands before leaving her in Polly's arms, and stalking down the hallway back towards the main room.

Meanwhile, back beside the ring, the women had settled back into their seats to watch the end of the fight.

"Where's Edith?" Lizzie asks as she drops into her seat, leaning forward to look down at the empty seat the teen had been occupying.

"I don't know. Maybe she went to find Finn?" Linda replies as she settles back into her own seat.

"He's over there." Lizzie states, nodding to the other side of the ring. "Arthur's not though. Or Tommy. Maybe she went to find them."

"Maybe." Ada replies with a shrug, still glancing around for her sister. "I don't think she would have left by herself though." Biting her lip, Ada rises from her seat, ignoring the cheers around her as Bonnie wins the fight, still searching for her siblings. "What's going on?" She asks, twisting her head to the side, rising up on to her tiptoes to watch Finn disappear. "Polly? What the fuck is going on?" She asks, watching her rush towards Linda, pulling a pale and shaking Edith along behind her, dropping into her seat to whisper in Linda's ear. "Will someone tell me what the fuck is going on?" She cries, faltering as her eyes meet Linda's, scanning her face, reading her facial expression. "No, no. Fuck no!" She whispers, shaking her head from side to side. Meanwhile, up on the ring, Bonnie yells out a cheer as he gets lifted into the air, stilling as he realises he had lost Edith in the crowd, frantically searching for his girl. When his eyes finally land on Edith, he pushes out of the men's arms, jumping down from the ring watching in terror as Edith collapses into Lizzie's arms. Pushing his way through the crowd to get to her, he gathers her into his arms as she sobs, dropping to the floor. Glancing up at the chaos around him, Bonnie flinches as Edith lets out a shriek, his body falling to cover hers, he hands flying up to covering her ears as Tommy fires a shot into the air.


End file.
